saved by the bell

Definitions

1. 1

   Of a competitor in a boxing or wrestling match or similar competition, spared from being…

   Of a competitor in a boxing or wrestling match or similar competition, spared from being counted out by the referee by the ringing of the bell which concludes the round.

   • Forrest floored Mosley again at the end of the round and almost finished him, but Mosley was saved by the bell.
2. 2

   Rescued or favorably assisted by a timely interruption or by the sudden termination of…

   Rescued or favorably assisted by a timely interruption or by the sudden termination of difficult circumstances.

   • So Asad's probing created a problem. . . . In a real sense Kissinger was saved by the bell: the American party had that afternoon to catch a plane to Israel.
   • The Montgomery bus boycott was "saved by the bell" of a federal Supreme Court decision that came just before the last minute.

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