life-line
Drowning person's hope
A lifeline is a rope or line used to rescue someone in danger, especially in water, or to secure workers at heights.
From this concrete sense come figurative uses: anything essential to survival or continued operation can be called a lifeline.
The monthly checks were her lifeline.
A phone-a-friend option on a quiz show is a lifeline.
In palmistry, the lifeline is a crease on the palm supposedly indicating longevity.
Serious sudden danger
- lifesaverEmergency rescue person
- buoyancyFluid's upward resistance
- flotationAbility to stay afloat
- coastguardSeafaring emergency responders
helicopter · survival · distress · overboard · drowning · aid · relief · extrication
Fundamentally necessary
- sustenanceMeans of living
- umbilicalOf the cord connecting fetus
- dependencyState of needing support
- nourishmentFood that sustains life
sustaining · crucial · indispensable · critical · oxygen · provision · maintenance · backbone
Voice communication device
- communicationExchanging ideas or information
- linkPoint of connection
- contactCommunication or physical touch
- reachExtend to touch
accessibility · hotline · helpline · network · channel · bridge · tether · cord
Predetermined course of events
- fortuneWealth or destiny
- chiromancyDivination from palm lines
- creaseLine from folding
- handGrasping body part
prediction · longevity · destiny · divination · mount
emergency
Serious sudden danger
coastguard · helicopter · survival · distress · overboard · drowning · aid · relief · extrication · evacuation
essential
Fundamentally necessary
- sustenanceMeans of living
- umbilicalOf the cord connecting fetus
- dependencyState of needing support
nourishment · sustaining · crucial · indispensable · critical · oxygen · provision · maintenance · backbone · mainstay
telephone
Voice communication device
- communicationExchanging ideas or information
- linkPoint of connection
- contactCommunication or physical touch
reach · accessibility · hotline · helpline · network · channel · bridge · tether · cord · cable
fate
Predetermined course of events
- fortuneWealth or destiny
- chiromancyDivination from palm lines
- creaseLine from folding
hand · prediction · longevity · destiny · divination · mount
life-linedeath sentence
Judicial order of execution
kiss of death · fatal blow · death knell · nail in the coffin · coup de grâce
life-lineseverance
Termination pay or disconnection
cut-off · disconnection · abandonment · isolation · desertion
life-linedeath warrant
Order authorizing an execution
doom · last straw · point of no return · death knell · lost cause