death benefit

noun

: money payable to the beneficiary of a deceased

Examples of death benefit in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Russian casualties also have soared to more than 30,000 a month, draining the Kremlin’s financial resources even more as bigger incentives must be offered to recruit enough replacements and pay out death benefits. —Jason Ma, Fortune, 29 May 2026

Erie Auto Plus increases coverage limits, adds diminishing deductible and a death benefit of up to $10,000. —Liz Knueven, CNBC, 28 May 2026

Another option is to purchase a life insurance policy with a long-term care rider, which permits you to use some or all of the death benefit to cover long-term care. —Daniel De Visé, USA Today, 4 May 2026

In his Wednesday interview, Gonzales alleged that when Santos-Aviles died, her widow reached out to the representative’s offices to ask about death benefits and retirement funds. —Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 5 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1867, in the meaning defined above

Legal Definition

death benefit

noun

: money payable to the beneficiary of a deceased as a benefit (as under a policy of life or accident insurance or a pension plan)

Note: The right to death benefits is generally terminated in cases of fraud, as when an insured commits suicide after purchasing a policy or when the beneficiary murders the insured.