kiss of death

noun phrase

Definition of kiss of death

: something (such as an act or association) ultimately causing ruin The movie has a G rating, which is almost a kiss of death. Last year, fewer than 2% of new films were rated G, and nearly all of those were animated. — Sports Illustrated —usually used with the Not long ago, when I proposed to my agent that she champion a book of mine as a work of literature instead of trying to present it as a "Sixties memoir," she told me, with a rueful laugh, that in publishing circles nowadays the "L" word is the kiss of death.— Joel Agee… a faraway region whose populations are so deeply anti-Western that any government cooperation with America can be the kiss of death …— Alan Tonelson

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about kiss of death

Dictionary Entries near kiss of death

kiss-me-at-the-gate

kiss-me-over-the-garden-gate

Statistics for kiss of death

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for kiss of death

The first known use of kiss of death was in 1943

See more words from the same year

Comments on kiss of death

What made you want to look up kiss of death? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

WORD OF THE DAY

gargantuan

tremendous in size, volume, or degree

Test Your Vocabulary

Homophone Quiz

In order to judge how people felt, the senator's office hired a firm to take a ______.

pole poal
poll pol

Test your knowledge - and maybe learn something along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games