This sounds like an open-ended essay question that you might hear at an interview for a construction site superintendent. I suppose there are two ways to look at this: One, what is the actual definition of "safety;” and Two, what is your interpretation of the definition.
Safety
The condition or quality of being safe (hidden or protected from danger, risk, or injury).
A device that is designed to prevent accidents, much like a lock on a firearm that prevents accidental discharge of ammunition.
These are pretty standard, pretty common understandings of what the word safety could mean. The first definition of the word originates from the French sauvete circa 1300 with an earlier relation to salvetet (circa 11c) which are both derived from Middle-Latin salvitatem (nom. Salvitas) which literally means "safety.” The second definition is said to have been first used in 1881. Of course, there is also a third definition which describes a defensive position on a football team, which also seems to have first been used in 1881.
Now, your interpretation of the word safety could be many things. If you look at a thesaurus, for example, you might see that safety could also mean: Security, impregnability, invulnerability, assurance, asylum, cover, defense, freedom, immunity, refuge, sanctuary, shelter.
Obviously, if you investigate the singular definitions of each these words you may find that safety could be used in a variety of creative or suggestive ways. Again, how you interpret these definitions and how you apply them is a matter of personal taste or opinion.
