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

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Dictionary Entries near kiss of death

kiss-me-at-the-gate

kiss-me-over-the-garden-gate

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Time Traveler for kiss of death

The first known use of kiss of death was in 1943

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kiss of death

noun

English Language Learners Definition of kiss of death

: something that causes something to fail or be ruined

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