Definition of "life preserver" []

• A buoyant device, usually in the shape of a ring, belt, or jacket, designed to keep a person afloat in the water. (noun)
• Chiefly British A weapon, such as a blackjack. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "A life preserver unfolded into a pale centipede, its hundreds of legs clicking along the deck."
• "“Guess how much that supposedly CPR-certified and exceptionally skilled life preserver makes an hour.”"