do-or-die

[ doo-er-dahy ]

/ ˈdu ərˈdaɪ /

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See synonyms for do-or-die on Thesaurus.com

adjective

reflecting or characterized by an irrevocable decision to succeed at all costs; desperate; all-out: a do-or-die attempt to halt the invaders.

involving a potentially fatal crisis or crucial emergency.

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Origin of do-or-die

First recorded in 1875–80

Words nearby do-or-die

doorbuster, doorcase, door chain, door charge, door check, do-or-die, doorframe, door furniture, door handle, door jack, doorjamb

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

How to use do-or-die in a sentence

Yves Albarello, MP of Seine-et-Marne, said the gunmen told police they were ready to “die as martyrs.”
France Kills Charlie Hebdo Murderers|Nico Hines|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
As this list shows, punishments typically run to a short-ish jail sentence and/or a moderately hefty fine.
In Defense of Blasphemy|Michael Tomasky|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Asserting our right to free speech is the only to ensure that 12 people did not die in vain.
Ayaan Hirsi Ali: Our Duty Is to Keep Charlie Hebdo Alive|Ayaan Hirsi Ali|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Though this too is debatable given that 25,000 to 40,000 people a year die of influenza—the vast majority of them unvaccinated.
When You Get the Flu This Winter, You Can Blame Anti-Vaxxers|Kent Sepkowitz|January 1, 2015|DAILY BEAST

They made it home, after which he did die, she nursing him to the end.
The Real-Life ‘Downton’ Millionairesses Who Changed Britain|Tim Teeman|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
"A camp-fire would hardly flash and die out like that, Sarge," he answered thoughtfully.
Raw Gold|Bertrand W. Sinclair
But men, through neglecting the rules of health, pass quickly to old age, and die before reaching that term.
The Mediaeval Mind (Volume II of II)|Henry Osborn Taylor
I cannot believe that God would think it necessary to come on earth as a man, and die on the Cross.
God and my Neighbour|Robert Blatchford
With three or four more wounds, and the words with which he aided her to die, he finished with her.
The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898, Volume XX, 1621-1624|Various
The ne'er-do-well blew, like seed before the wind, to distant places, but mankind at large stayed at home.
The Unsolved Riddle of Social Justice|Stephen Leacock

British Dictionary definitions for do-or-die

do-or-die

adjective

(prenominal) of or involving a determined and sometimes reckless effort to succeed

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with do-or-die

do or die

Exert supreme effort because failure is close at hand, as in Carol was going to set up the computer, do or die. This hyperbolic expression in effect says one will not be deterred by any obstacle. [c. 1600]

do-or-die

Origin of do-or-die

Words nearby do-or-die

Words related to do-or-die

How to use do-or-die in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for do-or-die

Other Idioms and Phrases with do-or-die