death certificate

noun

: an official document that gives information about a person's death (such as when and how the death happened)

Examples of death certificate in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Prosecutors also displayed the internet search history from Richins’ phone, which included queries about the lethal dose of fentanyl, luxury prisons and how poisoning is marked on a death certificate. —Hannah Schoenbaum, Chicago Tribune, 13 May 2026

Those included queries about the lethal dose of fentanyl, luxury prisons and how poisoning is marked on a death certificate. —Hannah Schoenbaum, Los Angeles Times, 13 May 2026

Prosecutors also displayed the internet search history from Richins’ phone, which included queries about the lethal dose of fentanyl, luxury prisons and how poisoning is marked on a death certificate. —ABC News, 12 May 2026

The number of deaths directly attributed to vitamin K deficiency bleeding appears to be small — fewer than a dozen annually — but has started to climb in recent years, according to death certificate data from federal and state agencies. —Duaa Eldeib, CNN Money, 8 May 2026

Legal Definition

death certificate

noun

: a document setting forth information (as age, occupation, and place of birth) relating to a dead person and including a doctor's certification of the cause of death

Note: Death certificates are issued by a particular public official, as a city or town clerk. A death certificate is required to document a person's death for certain purposes, as to file an estate tax return or to probate an estate.