nonlethal
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- nonlethality noun
- nonlethally adverb
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Current rules limit exports to nonlethal uses, such as rescue missions, transportation and minesweeping.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 9, 2026
Judge Menendez's 83-page order bars federal agents from arresting and "using pepper-spray or similar nonlethal munitions and crowd dispersal tools against persons who are engaging in peaceful and unobstructive protest activity".
From BBC • Jan. 17, 2026
If that weren’t scary enough, all were using “simunitions” — nonlethal training ammunition.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 27, 2025
The rifle the man was reported to be carrying turned out to be an airsoft gun, a nonlethal replica firearm that shoots plastic pellets and is often used for games like paintball, police said.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 2, 2024
When one of 'em lines up with a live contact, you get quite a little jolt—guaranteed nonlethal.
From Gambler's World by Laumer, Keith
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.
