civil death
noun
: the status of a living person equivalent in its legal consequences to natural death
specifically
: deprivation of civil rights
Examples of civil death in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Justice Maureen McKenna Goldberg wrote the dissenting opinion, saying changing the civil death law should be up to the state legislature, not the court.
—
Mark Pratt, BostonGlobe.com, 3 Mar. 2022
The practice of banning people from certain rights or activities because of a criminal conviction was once known as civil death.
—NBC News, 20 May 2021
British settlers brought the idea of civil death with them to the New World, and the first laws stripping criminals of voting rights appeared in the 1600s.
—Austin Sarat, The Conversation, 4 June 2020
Most civil death laws in the United States have been repealed or successfully challenged in court.
—USA TODAY, 4 July 2019
The concept dates to the colonial era, when certain criminals were shunned and stripped of rights, a practice known as civil death.
—New York Times, 11 May 2018
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Mark Pratt, BostonGlobe.com, 3 Mar. 2022
The practice of banning people from certain rights or activities because of a criminal conviction was once known as civil death.
—NBC News, 20 May 2021
British settlers brought the idea of civil death with them to the New World, and the first laws stripping criminals of voting rights appeared in the 1600s.
—Austin Sarat, The Conversation, 4 June 2020
Most civil death laws in the United States have been repealed or successfully challenged in court.
—USA TODAY, 4 July 2019
The concept dates to the colonial era, when certain criminals were shunned and stripped of rights, a practice known as civil death.
—New York Times, 11 May 2018
Cite this Entry
“Civil death.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/civil%20death. Accessed 22 Jul. 2025.
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