casualty

[ kazh-oo-uhl-tee ]

/ ˈkæʒ u əl ti /

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See synonyms for: casualty / casualties on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural cas·u·al·ties.

Military.

a member of the armed forces lost to service through death, wounds, sickness, capture, or because their whereabouts or condition cannot be determined.
casualties, loss in numerical strength through any cause, as death, wounds, sickness, capture, or desertion.

one who is injured or killed in an accident: There were no casualties in the traffic accident.

any person, group, thing, etc., that is harmed or destroyed as a result of some act or event: Their house was a casualty of the fire.

a serious accident, especially one involving bodily injury or death.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of casualty

First recorded in 1375–1425; casual + -ty²; replacing late Middle English casuelte, equivalent to casuel (see casual) + -te -ty²

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH casualty

casualty , causality

Words nearby casualty

casual, casual contact, casual Friday, casualization, casually, casualty, casualty insurance, casualwear, casuarina, casuist, casuistic

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use casualty in a sentence

When the teaching of reading is framed as a war, nuance and common areas of agreement are casualties.
Is there really a ‘science of reading’ that tells us exactly how to teach kids to read?|Valerie Strauss|January 26, 2021|Washington Post
I fully expect this vaccination program will be the next casualty of over promising and under delivering.
'It's Unimaginably Bad.' How Government Failures and the New COVID-19 Variant Are Pushing the U.K.'s Health System Into Crisis|Suyin Haynes|January 13, 2021|Time
COP26 was just one of many conference casualties, of course—but climate commitments kept coming despite predictions that action on the issue might completely fall by the wayside as the world battled the virus.
2020 was the year of the ‘net zero by 2050’ commitment. Will 2021 be the year we get the details?|kdunn6|January 1, 2021|Fortune
Both, in his view, are casualties of a presidency that has downplayed or dismissed science and medicine in the pursuit of political gain.
‘There’s been some cracks:’ Bill Gates questions FDA’s credibility on a COVID-19 vaccine|Claire Zillman, reporter|September 16, 2020|Fortune

Chrysler continued to produce engines in Kenosha until 2010, when it became a casualty of the company’s bankruptcy.
Kenosha’s unusual economic evolution made it the perfect political flashpoint|reymashayekhi|September 5, 2020|Fortune
All Cohen needed to do was add “of blessed memory” after each political casualty was mentioned.
Southern Dems Won’t Rise Again|Ben Jacobs|December 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
When faced with multiple casualty reports, AFP usually adopts the lower number.
ISIS Fighters Are Killing Faster than Statisticians Can Count|Peter Schwartzstein|December 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
By that logic however, Carol is also being floated as a possible casualty of the episode.
The Walking Dead’s ‘Crossed’: The Stage Is Now Set for a Bloody, Deadly Midseason Finale|Melissa Leon|November 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Aside from casualty figures, the books told me very little about what happened to the people.
Truman’s Grandson & Japan’s A-Bomb Survivors: A Story of Reconciliation|Clifton Truman Daniel|August 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But that era is ending, a casualty of newspaper economics and a changing society.
Who’s Watching Your Statehouse? No One.|Eleanor Clift|July 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
(a) Was the apparatus for lowering the boats on the Titanic at the time of the casualty in good working order?
Loss of the Steamship 'Titanic'|British Government
(a) What messages for assistance were sent by the Titanic after the casualty, and at what times respectively?
Loss of the Steamship 'Titanic'|British Government
(a) Was ice seen and reported by anybody on board the Titanic before the casualty occurred?
Loss of the Steamship 'Titanic'|British Government
(b) How long after the casualty was its seriousness realized by those in charge of the vessel (c) What steps were then taken?
Loss of the Steamship 'Titanic'|British Government
(a) How many persons on board the Titanic at the time of the casualty were ultimately rescued and by what means?
Loss of the Steamship 'Titanic'|British Government

British Dictionary definitions for casualty

casualty

/ (ˈkæʒjʊəltɪ) /

noun plural -ties

a serviceman who is killed, wounded, captured, or missing as a result of enemy action

a person who is injured or killed in an accident

a hospital department in which victims of accidents, violence, etc, are treated

anything that is lost, damaged, or destroyed as the result of an accident, etc

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

casualty

Origin of casualty

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH casualty

Words nearby casualty

Words related to casualty

How to use casualty in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for casualty