to death

Idioms  

1. To an extreme or intolerable degree, as in I am tired to death of these fund-raising phone calls, or That movie just thrilled me to death. This hyperbolic phrase is used as an intensifier. Also see sick and tired; tired out. [c. 1300]

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Example Sentences

“In the absence of official oversight and enforcement, unmitigated expansion of the fireworks businesses operating at the site in Esparto led directly to death and destruction.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 11, 2026

“You’re going to probably starve the person to death before you starve the cancer to death,” she said.

From Slate • Mar. 30, 2026

“You don’t want to rock down the highway to death metal at 90 decibels with a nervous dog in the car,” she says.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026

Technically, they don’t call it death insurance because there are certain kinds of deaths it doesn’t cover, and it often includes other coverages unrelated to death.

From Salon • Mar. 24, 2026

Just then here he came again, scooting along on the game trail, screaming and making enough racket to scare a goblin to death.

From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls