Translation guide
A lifeboat is a small boat carried on a ship for use in an emergency, or a boat used to rescue people at sea. In Japanese, the most common word is 救命ボート, but other terms exist depending on context.
The small boat kept on a ship or boat for use if the vessel must be abandoned.
The standard term for a lifeboat on a ship. Used in safety drills and emergencies.
救命ボートに乗ってください。
Please get into the lifeboat.
船には十分な数の救命ボートが備え付けられていた。
The ship was equipped with a sufficient number of lifeboats.
A more formal or technical term, often used in maritime regulations. 艇 means 'boat'.
救命艇の定員は50名です。
The lifeboat's capacity is 50 people.
A boat used to rescue people from a sinking ship or from the water, often operated by coast guard or rescue services.
A rescue boat, often used by professional rescue services. 救助 means 'rescue'.
救助艇が遭難者を助けに向かった。
The rescue boat headed out to save the victims.
Used metaphorically to describe a person, organization, or thing that saves someone from failure or disaster.
Literally 'helping hand', used figuratively for a lifeline or rescue.
彼の援助はまさに救いの手だった。
His assistance was truly a lifeboat.
Literally 'lifeline', often used metaphorically for something that saves one from a desperate situation.
その融資が会社にとっての命綱となった。
That loan became a lifeboat for the company.
Can also refer to a rescue boat in general, though primarily associated with shipboard lifeboats.
救命ボートが沈みかけた船から乗組員を救出した。
A lifeboat rescued the crew from the sinking ship.