life-and-death
[lahyf-uh n-deth]
adjective
ending with the death or possible death of one of the participants; crucially important: The cobra was engaged in a life-and-death struggle with the mongoose.
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When Dictionaries Are a Matter of Life or Death…Two recent events have raised the complicated question of whether or not dictionaries belong in courtrooms. A murder trial in Virginia was disrupted because the jurors illicitly consulted two dictionaries and a thesaurus. (The defense is currently seeking a mistrial.) And even on the Supreme Court it seems dictionaries are being misused. In the past, judges have resorted to the dictionary to decide important trials, …
RELATED WORDS
great, notable, preeminent, big, crucial, vital, significant, radical, serious, main, principal, acute, insistent, demanding, compelling, imperative, immediate, dire, critical, necessary
Nearby words
- life stress,
- life support,
- life table,
- life vest,
- life zone,
- life-boat,
- life-care,
- life-giving,
- life-or-death,
- life-saver
Also life-or-death.
Origin of life-and-death
First recorded in 1680–90
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
life and death
see matter of life and death.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.