lethal
Americanadjective
-
able to cause or causing death
-
of or suggestive of death
Related Words
See fatal.
Other Word Forms
- hyperlethal adjective
- lethality noun
- lethally adverb
- lethalness noun
- nonlethal adjective
- nonlethally adverb
- semilethal adjective
Etymology
Origin of lethal
First recorded in 1575–85; from Latin lētālis, equivalent to lēt(um) “death” + -ālis -al 1; spelling (hence pronunciation) with -h- by association with Greek lḗthē “oblivion”; Lethe ( def. )
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.
That unease about working on lethal technology is just one of many factors contributing to an ongoing skills gap in the defence sector.
From BBC
After a few months searching for confidence and his top level, by the time 2025 began Mbappe was back to his lethal best.
From Barron's
Although he comes across as lethally ineffective—desperation is not the way to please an audience—the movie positions his act as a hit.
By eschewing inefficient long twos, Curry and Harden became the two most lethal scorers in the NBA.
Melanoma is the most lethal form of skin cancer and is responsible for about 11,000 deaths in the U.S. each year.
From Science Daily
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
