rescue

come to (one's) rescue

To help someone in trouble. The phrase can be used for both serious and trivial situations. Thank goodness the lifeguard came to my rescue; otherwise, I might have drowned! Thanks for the notes! You totally came to my rescue after I missed so many classes. A: "Your car broke down on the highway? Are you OK?" B: "Yeah, a tow truck driver has already come to my rescue."

See also: come, rescue, to

come to the rescue

To provide aid to someone or something in danger or difficulty. Thank goodness the lifeguard came to the rescue. I thought I was going to drown! Several financial institutions would have been facing total collapse had the government not come to the rescue. A: "Your car broke down on the highway? Are you OK?" B: "Yeah, a tow truck driver has already come to the rescue."

See also: come, rescue, to

rescue from (someone or something)

1. To liberate or deliver someone or something from a dangerous or threatening person, thing, place, or situation. A noun or pronoun is used between "rescue" and "from." She managed to rescue the hostages from the gunman without anyone getting hurt. The government sent their best agents to rescue the wounded soldiers from the enemy prison.

2. To liberate someone from legal custody or imprisonment by forcible means. A noun or pronoun is used between "rescue" and "from." The cartel rescued the crime boss from the federal prison by blasting through the rear wall with dynamite. We'll rescue him from the sheriff when they move him from the courthouse to the county jail.

3. To cause someone to no longer have to deal with an undesirable person or situation. Give me a call if you need me to come rescue you from the dinner party. My friends and I have a signal we give when one of us needs to be rescued from some jerk at the bar.

4. To save something from an undesirable situation or outcome. The huge investment rescued the company from bankruptcy. The consultants are trying to rescue the project from the various mismanagement it has seen since its inception.

See also: rescue

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

come to (someone's or something's) rescue

to rescue or save someone or something. The paramedics came to our rescue at once. A big donor came to the college's rescue.

See also: come, rescue, to

rescue someone or something from someone or something

to save or liberate someone or something from someone or something. I hoped that someone would come and rescue me from this boring person. Nothing can rescue us from the ravages of time.

See also: rescue

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.