How to Use sudden death in a Sentence

sudden death

noun
  • We won 27–24 in sudden death.
  • His sudden death must have been a severe blow to her.
    — Natalia Sánchez Loayza, Scientific American, 13 Mar. 2026
  • For the rest of us, sudden death felt like a mercy killing.
    — James Horncastle, New York Times, 7 Feb. 2026
  • If the tie can still not be broken, a sudden death game will be played.
    — New York Times, 1 Dec. 2021
  • All sudden deaths are shocking.
    — Rebecca Edmisten, Mercury News, 22 Apr. 2026
  • That's why people were saddened to learn of his sudden death.
    — Jermont Terry, CBS News, 3 Jan. 2026
  • About a quarter of the time, sudden death is the first symptom.
    — Emily Kay Votruba, EverydayHealth.com, 10 Feb. 2026
  • The sudden death of someone who was so new to the mainstream was of course a shock.
    — Paul Grein, Billboard, 20 Sep. 2023
  • The sudden death of their fatherwas a shock.
    — Marcy Thompson, Scientific American, 16 Apr. 2026
  • If there's still no winner, each round becomes sudden death.
    — Mike Toole, CBS News, 13 June 2026
  • But there was no capsizing, no sudden death.
    — Catherine Lacey, New Yorker, 5 Oct. 2025
  • Terry scored just six points, but the last two came off a Banchero pass in sudden death.
    — Duane Rankin, The Arizona Republic, 9 July 2022
  • His sudden death in 2017 left a deep void, both in the band and among fans.
    — Jessica Lynch, Billboard, 10 Sep. 2024
  • There is no timetable for the results, but sudden death necropsies can take two to three months or longer.
    — John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, 7 Dec. 2021
  • With the shootout score tied at 4-4 after five shots apiece, the game went to sudden death.
    — Kyle Foley, Orlando Sentinel, 10 Aug. 2024
  • His sudden death of a stroke at 61 left a huge void in our family.
    — Marc Myers, WSJ, 28 Sep. 2021
  • The mental health consequences of so much sudden death in so short a time could be dire.
    — David Montgomery, Washington Post, 7 Dec. 2020
  • However in this framework, the game would not end in sudden death.
    — Nate Davis, USA TODAY, 20 Apr. 2021
  • His sudden death left many questions unanswered.
    — Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2026
  • They had all been rocked by the same news of Anderson’s sudden death.
    — Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 19 Apr. 2026
  • Grant won the No 18 hole to send that match into a sudden death hole.
    — Michelle Gardner, The Arizona Republic, 25 May 2021
  • Tie games would be decided by sudden death, where the first person to score wins the round.
    — Devin Robertson, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Aug. 2025
  • The teenager’s sudden death has stunned his family and the city.
    — Nick Stoico, BostonGlobe.com, 8 Sep. 2023
  • There will be two 10-minute periods, and no sudden death goal.
    — Scott Horner, The Indianapolis Star, 13 Dec. 2022
  • That could mean anything from the sudden death of a student to a bomb threat to a school shooting.
    — Natalie Eilbert, jsonline.com, 5 Mar. 2026
  • If we're still tied after the first five, the penalties turn into rounds of sudden death.
    — Andrew Greif, NBC news, 30 June 2026
  • And if the match is still tied at that point, penalty kicks resume but in a sudden death format.
    — Andrew Greif, NBC news, 28 June 2026
  • His childhood was rocked by the sudden death of a friend in a hiking accident.
    — Maria Pasquini, People.com, 28 Jan. 2025
  • Nine days after the sudden death of their 54-year-old coach, shock and grief remain raw.
    — Jori Epstein, USA TODAY, 4 Dec. 2020
  • The event at the center of the book is the sudden death of Hiroko’s father.
    — Anna Altman, The New Yorker, 17 July 2019

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sudden death.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Last Updated: