The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Salvation \Sal*va"tion\, n. [OE. salvacioun, sauvacion, F.
   salvation, fr. L. salvatio, fr. salvare to save. See Save.]
   1. The act of saving; preservation or deliverance from
      destruction, danger, or great calamity.
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   2. (Theol.) The redemption of man from the bondage of sin and
      liability to eternal death, and the conferring on him of
      everlasting happiness.
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            To earn salvation for the sons of men. --Milton.
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            Godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation. --2.
                                                  Cor. vii. 10.
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   3. Saving power; that which saves.
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            Fear ye not; stand still, and see the salvation of
            the Lord, which he will show to you to-day. --Ex.
                                                  xiv. 13.
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   Salvation Army, an organization for prosecuting the work of
      Christian evangelization, especially among the degraded
      populations of cities. It is virtually a new sect founded
      in London in 1861 by William Booth. The evangelists, male
      and female, have military titles according to rank, that
      of the chief being "General." They wear a uniform, and in
      their phraseology and mode of work adopt a quasi military
      style.
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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

salvation
    n 1: (theology) the act of delivering from sin or saving from
         evil [syn: redemption, salvation]
    2: a means of preserving from harm or unpleasantness; "tourism
       was their economic salvation"; "they turned to individualism
       as their salvation"
    3: the state of being saved or preserved from harm
    4: saving someone or something from harm or from an unpleasant
       situation; "the salvation of his party was the president's
       major concern"