fatality
fatality Lexical Profile
fatality Game Scores & Validity
• noun
An occurrence of death resulting from an accident, disaster, war, or disease, or the person who dies in such an event.
"Improved highway safety regulations have significantly reduced the number of traffic fatalities over the past decade."
The quality or capacity of causing death or ruin; deadliness.
"Medical researchers studied the high fatality of the untreated viral infection."
The quality of being predetermined by fate or destiny; helplessness in the face of inevitable events.
"A sense of tragic fatality hangs over the characters from the opening scene of the play."
Word Nuance & Usage
Do not confuse 'fatality' with 'casualty': a 'fatality' always refers specifically to a death, whereas a 'casualty' includes anyone either killed or injured in an accident, disaster, or conflict.
• Rhymes for fatality
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in the late 15th century from Middle French 'fatalité' or Late Latin 'fatalitas', from Latin 'fatalis' (meaning 'ordained by fate' or 'deadly'), ultimately derived from 'fatum' (fate or destiny).