death certificate

American  

noun

• death certificates
  plural

1. a certificate signed by a doctor, giving pertinent identifying information, as age and sex, about a deceased person and certifying the time, place, and cause of death.

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death certificate British  

noun

1. a legal document issued by a qualified medical practitioner certifying the death of a person and stating the cause if known

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• death certificates
  plural

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

death certificate

On the infant’s death certificate, Diamantoni said, measles is listed as a contributing condition unrelated to the underlying cause of death.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026

“Part of me jokes that paying for a death certificate would be like buying a lottery ticket.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 1, 2026

They asked me to send them a copy of her death certificate.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026

Simone's brother, Zak told BBC Newsbeat he found the conclusion "pretty ridiculous", as a death certificate issued in Laos lists "methanol toxicity" as one of her causes of death.

From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026

No recent photographs, no hospital records, no death certificate, just the accident report from the state highway police: Dr. Sidney Sikes suffered a crushed leg and Samuel W. Westing had severe facial injuries.

From "The Westing Game" by Ellen Raskin