Safehouses

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A facility where persons can find shelter and safety from harm or persecution exists for those requiring refuge from danger or hostile environments
2. Locations specifically intended to provide refuge and protection for individuals seeking to evade threats or surveillance are crucial for personal security
3. Places designed to offer concealment and security for people needing to avoid danger

Etymology: "Safehouses" is simply the plural of "safehouse," a compound formed from "safe" and "house." The pairing is transparent: "safe" comes from the Latin "salvus," meaning uninjured or whole, and "house" is an ancient Germanic word for a dwelling. Put together, the compound describes a building where someone is kept unharmed. The word is a plain compound with no coinage story attached, so its interest lies in the meanings of its two parts. "Safe" passed into English through Old French, and its sense of freedom from danger has been part of the language for centuries, while "house" has been used in English since Old English times. Joining the two made a term that names a place rather than a state of mind, which is why the compound reads so naturally as a noun.

Synonyms: shelters, refuges, sanctuaries, hideouts