casualty

American  

[kazh-oo-uhl-tee] / ˈkæʒ u əl ti /

noun

plural

casualties

1. Military.

   1. a member of the armed forces lost to service through death, wounds, sickness, capture, or because their whereabouts or condition cannot be determined.

   2. casualties, loss in numerical strength through any cause, as death, wounds, sickness, capture, or desertion.

2. one who is injured or killed in an accident.

   There were no casualties in the traffic accident.

3. 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.

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

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casualty British  

/ ˈkæʒjʊəltɪ /

noun

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

2. a person who is injured or killed in an accident

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

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

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Etymology

Origin of casualty

First recorded in 1375–1425; casual + -ty ²; replacing late Middle English casuelte, equivalent to casuel ( casual ) + -te -ty ²

Example Sentences

No casualties were reported and residential buildings were left undamaged.

From BBC

According to West Mercia Police, there are no reports of casualties at the scene, in an area of Whitchurch called Chemistry.

From BBC

Property and casualty insurers also pick up some of the costs of excessive litigation, which get reflected in higher premiums.

From The Wall Street Journal

Yes, he lacks foreign policy experience, but nearly four years into a war that has cost more than a million casualties, he argues, it is time to try something new.

From The Wall Street Journal

The biggest casualty is the October unemployment rate, which won’t be published at all.

From MarketWatch

Related Words

• blow
• calamity
• catastrophe
• disaster
• mishap