deadline
Americannoun
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the time by which something must be finished or submitted; the latest time for finishing something.
a five o'clock deadline.
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a line or limit that must not be passed.
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(formerly) a boundary around a military prison beyond which a prisoner could not venture without risk of being shot by the guards.
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of deadline
Explanation
A deadline is a date or time when something must be finished. At work and school, most projects have deadlines. If you don’t get your paper in by the deadline, you won’t get a good grade. If you think missing a deadline and getting a low grade is bad, think about how this word came to be: It was a line that went around a prison and if a prisoner crossed it, he could be shot. Now that’s a deadline! A deadline sounds scary, and it does frighten a lot of people — if you don't get a paper in by the deadline, you could lose points or fail. But hey, you’ll live.
Vocabulary lists containing deadline
"LAFFF"
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Employment, List 1
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocabulary for April 15–April 21, 2023
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A Lufthansa agent had offered to walk Talankin to the gate and keep hold of his statuette during the flight, but this plan was vetoed by a TSA official, according to Deadline.
From Barron's • May 1, 2026
Based on ticket presales, Disney is projecting an opening weekend box office of $66 million, Deadline reported.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 28, 2026
Director Antoine Fuqua told Deadline over the weekend that the rediscovery of the NDA led to a "tough period" because the team had to "rethink everything".
From BBC • Apr. 27, 2026
Jamie Wooten, a friend and one of her longtime writing partners, told Deadline she died in Washington, D.C.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2026
If they had sold out to the enemy, they had given him nothing in return for his wages except perhaps a promise to be fulfilled on a Deadline Day.
From Check and Checkmate by Miller, Walter M.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
