mortality rate

American

[mawr-tal-i-tee reyt] / mɔrˈtæl ɪ ti ˌreɪt /

noun

the relative frequency of deaths in a specific population during a specified time, often cited as the percentage of human deaths during a public health crisis, or of wildlife deaths due to environmental perils.

Patients over the age of 80 had the highest mortality rate during the last flu season.
The mortality rate of the bald eagle falls to about 25 percent after the first year of life.

mortality rate British

noun

another term for death rate

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of mortality rate

First recorded in 1860–65

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.

Mortality rate schedules for prisoners were not available.

From Prevalence of Imprisonment in the U.S. Population, 1974-2001 by Bonczar, Thomas P.

Mortality rate at birth is high in captive individuals but has not been determined in natural populations.

From Natural History of Cottonmouth Moccasin, Agkistrodon piscovorus (Reptilia) by Burkett, Ray D.

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023