living will

noun

a document instructing physicians, relatives, or others to refrain from the use of extraordinary measures, as life-support equipment, to prolong one's life in the event of a terminal illness.

Origin of living will

First recorded in 1970–75

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for living will

living will

noun

a document stating that if its author becomes terminally ill, his or her life should not be prolonged by artificial means, such as a life-support machine

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

living will in Medicine

living will

[lĭv′ĭng]

n.

A will in which the signer requests not to be kept alive by medical life-support systems in the event of a terminal illness.