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Synonyms

passive euthanasia

British  

noun

  1. a form of euthanasia in which medical treatment that will keep a dying patient alive for a time is withdrawn

"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

Example Sentences

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Dychtwald also expects that active and passive euthanasia might become openly discussed.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 13, 2026

India legalised passive euthanasia in 2018 but active euthanasia - any act that intentionally helps a person kill themselves - remains illegal.

From BBC • Mar. 11, 2026

This is the first instance of court-approved passive euthanasia - the act of withdrawing or withholding life-sustaining treatment - in India.

From BBC • Mar. 11, 2026

Some other countries accept only passive euthanasia, where, at the patient's request, some medical treatments are stopped, causing the person's death.

From Reuters • Apr. 3, 2023

The difference, however, is that active euthanasia causes the immediate cessation of patient suffering, whereas passive euthanasia may result in prolonged suffering for the patient because death is not immediate.

From Textbooks • Jun. 15, 2022

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.