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• life-and-death
  life-and-death

  adjective

  ending with the death or possible death of one of the participants; crucially important.
• life and death
  life and death

  see matter of life and death.

life-and-death

American  

[lahyf-uhn-deth] / ˈlaɪf ənˈdɛθ /

adjective

1. 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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life and death Idioms  

1. see matter of life and death.

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Etymology

Origin of life-and-death

First recorded in 1680–90

Example Sentences

Jess Asato, another Labour critic of the legislation, said "a bill like this with such profound life-and-death impacts... must not be forced through without the scrutiny it deserves".

From BBC • Jan. 30, 2026

Mr. Braude is suitably critical of his subject for her sometimes glib approach to life-and-death matters, and he pegs her appeal as “delivering hard news as if it was light gossip.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 19, 2026

Frank Lima, a Los Angeles firefighter and general secretary-treasurer of the International Assn. of Fire Fighters, or IAFF, said the stairways are a life-and-death issue.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 29, 2025

The results were clear: For millions of people and several irreplaceable ecosystems, like coral reefs, the difference of half a degree of warming would be life-and-death.

From Slate • Jan. 13, 2025

Maybe that was true; or maybe it was more a matter of needing to have strict control over the behavior of those who held life-and-death power over other men.

From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover