LIFE-AND-DEATH Synonyms: 22 Similar and Opposite Words

life-and-death

adjective

variants also life-or-death

Definition of life-and-death

as in crucial

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of life-and-death Digital advances also raise pressing questions about the ethics of outsourcing life-and-death decisions to machines. — Phillips Payson O’Brien, The Atlantic, 18 July 2026 The life-and-death rescue played out on a narrow suspension cable above shocked motorists, pedestrians and the gleaming water below the bridge. — Kerry Burke, New York Daily News, 9 July 2026 For our hunter-gatherer ancestors, getting enough of these critical nutrients was a daily life-and-death struggle. — Sandee Lamotte, CNN Money, 17 June 2026 The life-and-death stakes were raised when the former high school series jumped five years to show a now-young adult Rue becoming a drug mule and working for rival kingpins (Martha Kelly’s Laurie also took her own life in the finale). — Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 1 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for life-and-death

Recent Examples of Synonyms for life-and-death

Adjective

Even the golf cart service (crucial in a resort this big) is on point, with a seamless online ordering platform and a bounty of staff ready to ferry you around, even at peak times.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Oct. 2026
This latest accomplishment adds to an already strong year for Skechers athletes, as OG Anunoby was crucial to the New York Knicks’ championship and made the game-winning shot to cap off a historic comeback in game 4 of the NBA Finals.

— Ian Servantes, Footwear News, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of crucial

Adjective

The decisive Game 7 will be played at Chase Center in San Francisco on Saturday night as each team seeks its first WNBA championship.

— Charles Odum, Los Angeles Times, 29 Oct. 2026
That means party switchers could be a decisive voting block in Tuesday’s statewide races.

— Claire Heddles, Miami Herald, 29 Oct. 2026

Definition of decisive

Adjective

All this is at stake when fundamental science budgets are being drastically cut.

— Mattanjah de Vries, Chicago Tribune, 28 Oct. 2026
Finally, there’s a fundamental misconception that estate planning is an expensive process that’s necessary only for older and wealthier people.

— Christina Wing, Fortune, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of fundamental

Adjective

Key Takeaways These artificial channels are up to five times more selective for lithium, offering a simpler way to extract the critical battery material.

— Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 28 Oct. 2026
Seeking to acquire as wide a tent of support as possible, Student List purposefully left its position on most critical issues outside of corruption vague and noncommittal.

— Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of critical

Adjective

The election process was marred by allegations of voter suppression, with Lula's campaign reporting suspended public transportation in some key areas, prompting the court to extend voting by two hours.

— Anniek Bao, CNBC, 26 Oct. 2026
Cooper has led wire-to-wire over Republican opponent Michael Whatley, maintaining wide polling and fundraising leads and forcing key GOP super PACs to pause spending in the race to focus elsewhere.

— Mabinty Quarshie, The Washington Examiner, 26 Oct. 2026

Definition of key

Adjective

There’s no such thing as a basic room here; even the smallest ones, at 240 to 260 square feet, look out over the bluffs to whitecaps winking in the sun.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 29 Oct. 2026
For the new fiscal year, the NSF’s budget is proposed to be cut in half, along with large budget cuts in most areas of basic science, including medical science at the National Institutes of Health.

— Mattanjah de Vries, Chicago Tribune, 28 Oct. 2026

Definition of basic

Adjective

Most state lawmakers understand this, but some pivotal decisions are being made by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

— Max Harden, The Orlando Sentinel, 29 Oct. 2026
Show more Days before Tuesday’s pivotal Israeli election, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shocked his country by offering a bleak economic forecast that critics said could make Israel more like Iran, Russia and North Korea.

— New York Times, New York Times, 28 Oct. 2026

Definition of pivotal

Browse Nearby Words

life

life-and-death

lifeblood

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“Life-and-death.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/life-and-death. Accessed 1 Nov. 2026.

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Synonyms of life-and-death

adjective

Example Sentences

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