dead

1 of 3

adjective

1
: deprived of life : no longer alive
a dead tree
dead soldiers
missing and presumed dead
2
a(1)
: having the appearance of death : deathly
in a dead faint
(2)
: lacking power to move, feel, or respond : numb
my arm feels dead
b
: very tired
Our legs were completely dead after the hike.
c(1)
: incapable of being stirred emotionally or intellectually : unresponsive
a heart dead to pity
felt dead inside
(2)
: grown cold : extinguished
dead coals
3
a
: inanimate, inert
dead matter
b
: barren, infertile
dead soil
c
: no longer producing or functioning : exhausted
a dead battery
4
a(1)
: lacking power or effect
a dead law
(2)
: no longer having interest, relevance, or significance
a dead issue
b
: no longer in use : obsolete
a dead language
c
: no longer active : extinct
a dead volcano
d
: lacking in gaiety or animation
a dead party
e(1)
: lacking in commercial activity : quiet
The city is dead after five o'clock.
(2)
: commercially idle or unproductive
dead capital
f
: lacking elasticity (see elasticity sense 1a)
a dead tennis ball
g
: being out of action or out of use
The phone went dead.
specifically, electrical engineering : free from any connection to a source of voltage and free from electric charges
a dead electrical circuit
h(1)
sports and games : being out of play
a dead ball
(2)
croquet : temporarily forbidden to play or to make a certain play
5
a
: not running or circulating : stagnant
dead water
b
: not turning
the dead center of a lathe
c
mechanical engineering : not imparting motion or power although otherwise functioning
a dead rear axle
d
: lacking warmth, vigor, or taste
The fire was dead.
a dead wine
6
a
: absolutely uniform
a dead level of mediocrity
b(1)
: unerring
a dead shot with a rifle
(2)
: exact
dead center of the target
(3)
: certain to be doomed
he's dead if he's late for curfew
(4)
: irrevocable
a dead loss
c
: abrupt
brought to a dead stop
d(1)
: complete, absolute
a dead silence
(2)
: all-out
caught it on the dead run
7
: devoid of former occupants
dead villages
deadness noun

dead

2 of 3

noun

plural dead
1
: someone who is no longer alive : one that is dead (see dead entry 1 sense 1)
usually used collectively
They were among the dead.
2
: the state of being dead
raised him from the deadColossians 2:12 (Revised Standard Version)
3
: the time of greatest quiet
the dead of night

dead

3 of 3

adverb

1
: absolutely, utterly
dead certain
finished dead last
The room became dead quiet.Farley Mowat
2
: suddenly and completely
stopped dead in his tracks
3
: directly
dead ahead
Phrases
dead in the water
1
: incapable of being effective : stalled
peace talks were dead in the water
2
: as good as dead : doomed
most books are dead in the water long before their publicationPhillip Lopate
dead to rights
: with no chance of escape or excuse : red-handed
had him dead to rights for the robbery
over one's dead body
: only by overcoming one's utter and determined resistance
vows that they'll raise his taxes over his dead body
Choose the Right Synonym for dead

dead, defunct, deceased, departed, late mean devoid of life.

dead applies literally to what is deprived of vital force but is used figuratively of anything that has lost any attribute (such as energy, activity, radiance) suggesting life.

a dead, listless performance

defunct stresses cessation of active existence or operation.

a defunct television series

deceased, departed, and late apply to persons who have died recently.

deceased is the preferred term in legal use.

the estate of the deceased

departed is used usually as a euphemism.

our departed sister

late is used especially with reference to a person in a specific relation or status.

the company's late president

Examples of dead in a Sentence

Adjective Her husband is dead. He died last year. He was found dead in his apartment yesterday. He lay dead on the floor. The lost mountain climbers were believed dead. The poster said that the robbers were wanted dead or alive. Our legs were completely dead after hiking all day. I'm dead if I come in late for work again. If I ever get my hands on you, you're dead! Noun By the end of the war, there were over two million dead. He began his journey in the dead of winter. Adverb She's dead certain that she can finish the job. We were dead tired by the end of the day. He's not joking. In fact, he's dead serious. They were both dead drunk and passed out on the floor. She finished the race dead last.
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
One of the male victims was found dead at the scene, police said. David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 5 Mar. 2024 After Harris was found dead, police interviewed the ex-boyfriend, who said Harris was his roommate, police say. Liam Quinn, Peoplemag, 5 Mar. 2024 Police saw burn wounds on the baby’s body, and the Kansas City Fire Department declared the baby dead at the scene. Andrea Klick, Kansas City Star, 4 Mar. 2024 In nearby Hutchinson County, 83-year-old Joyce Blankenship was found dead, her family said. Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN, 4 Mar. 2024 Christopher had been attending a football camp at Blue Ridge High School in Lakeside with the Cesar Chavez High School football team and was found dead in Show Low Lake on July 18 after going missing the day before. The Arizona Republic, 4 Mar. 2024 The body of a woman found dead in a Nashville creek over the weekend has been identified as Emily Bradley, a woman who disappeared several weeks ago, authorities said. Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 4 Mar. 2024 Read Next National College students help identify man found dead in hotel room in 2002, AZ officials say June 23, 2023 10:03 AM Read Next California Surveyor found remains near California canyon in 2000, officials say. Daniella Segura, Sacramento Bee, 4 Mar. 2024 Remove any dead roots and any large roots that will interfere with potting. Andrea Beck, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Mar. 2024
Noun
In its parched acres are said to be some of the uncounted and unknown dead from the 1928 St. Francis dam collapse, many of them Latino workers and their families. Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 27 Feb. 2024 That review found that at least 43 of the 100 victims on the official list of Lahaina’s dead lived in Kuhua Camp — more than in any other neighborhood. Alicia Victoria Lozano, NBC News, 6 Feb. 2024 The Palestinian Health Ministry said the 13 dead included four women and four children. Fares Akram, Anchorage Daily News, 9 May 2023 War and loss and Baba Yaga and the voices of the old dead are always haunting us. Mark Athitakis, Los Angeles Times, 31 Jan. 2024 Some have pushed local school and city officials to improve campus safety measures, while other parents have sought to honor their dead by pushing for gun-control measures in Austin and Washington. Devlin Barrett, Washington Post, 18 Jan. 2024 Burials also reveal the range of ways in which humans lay their dead to rest. Meilan Solly, Smithsonian Magazine, 26 Dec. 2023 That’s the memorial to the Confederate dead buried at Arlington National Cemetery. Brian T. Allen, National Review, 23 Dec. 2023 And when exhaustive efforts to find families fall short, experts say officials should post the names of the unclaimed dead to a government database where families can search for loved ones. Mike Hixenbaugh, NBC News, 19 Dec. 2023
Adverb
From politicians to militia leaders, many who cross Putin end up dead — often poisoned or blown up in airplanes or by car bombs. Tracy Wilkinson, Los Angeles Times, 20 Feb. 2024 Kansas ranks dead last in the Big 12 in made 3s per game. Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 16 Feb. 2024 After a spooky séance reveals that the party host's deceased daughter was, in fact, murdered, another guest ends up dead later that night, prompting Poirot to investigate. Ilana Gordon, EW.com, 19 Jan. 2024 Perhaps relatedly, the Clippers are allowing second-chance points in clutch scenarios at the league’s second-worst rate, and rank dead last in points in the paint allowed. Andrew Greif, Los Angeles Times, 17 Nov. 2023 The indifference of Russian commanders to the lives of their troops was well known: Images of Russian injured and dead abandoned on roadsides and in fields were another morale-boosting meme for Ukrainians. James Verini Paolo Pellegrin, New York Times, 1 Nov. 2023 Reagan was dead wrong; government absolutely can be the solution. Bronwen Latimer, Washington Post, 16 Oct. 2023 His players are dead serious, unflappable and willing to get down and dirty. Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2023 Texas town devastated by tornado, 5 dead across South from severe weather This cumulative heat offers no relief, and often contributes to potentially deadly heat exhaustion. Nadine El-Bawab, ABC News, 17 June 2023

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

Word History

Etymology

Adjective, Noun, and Adverb

Middle English deed, from Old English dēad; akin to Old Norse dauthr dead, deyja to die, Old High German tōt dead — more at die

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adverb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of dead was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near dead

Cite this Entry

“Dead.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dead. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

dead

1 of 3 adjective
1
: deprived of life : no longer alive
2
a
: having the appearance of death : deathly
in a dead faint
c
: very tired
the trip was really tiring; I'm dead
d
: not reacting : insensitive
dead to pity
e
: burned out : grown cold
dead coals
3
a
: not naturally having life : inanimate
dead matter
b
: no longer producing or functioning
dead battery
4
a
: no longer in use or effect : obsolete
dead language
b
: no longer active : extinct
dead volcano
c
: not lively
a dead party
d
: lacking in commercial activity : quiet
e
: lacking spring
dead tennis ball
f
: being out of action or out of use
a dead telephone line
g
: being out of play
a dead ball
5
: not running or circulating : stagnant
dead air
6
a
: absolutely uniform
the dead level of the prairie
b
: unerring, exact
a dead shot
dead center of the target
c
: being sudden and complete
a dead stop
deadness noun

dead

2 of 3 noun
plural dead
1
plural : those that are dead
the living and the dead
2
: the time of greatest quiet or least activity
dead of night
dead of winter

dead

3 of 3 adverb
1
: to the highest degree
dead right
2
: suddenly and completely
stopped dead
3
: straight entry 2
dead ahead

Medical Definition

dead

1 of 2 adjective
1
: deprived of life : having died
dead of scarlet fever
2
: lacking power to move, feel, or respond : numb

dead

2 of 2 noun
plural dead
: one that is dead
usually used collectively

More from Merriam-Webster on dead

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