mortality rate

noun

plural mortality rates

: the ratio between deaths and individuals in a specified population and during a particular time period : the incidence of deaths in a given population during a defined time period (such as one year) that is typically expressed per 1000 or 100,000 individuals : death rate

an annual mortality rate of 15 deaths per 1000 people

Note: A crude mortality rate does not distinguish between specific causes of death or groups of individuals and measures the incidence of all deaths in a population during a given time period. More specific mortality rates are based on narrower categories of individuals or causes of death.

an infant mortality rate of 9 deaths per 1000 live births

mortality rates of lung cancer patients

infectious disease mortality rates

Examples of mortality rate in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Ming notes that these same traits, measured in children, predict lifetime earnings and all-cause mortality rates. —Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 16 May 2026

The maternal mortality rate for Black women is more than three times that of white women, according to the CDC’s latest figures. —Roni Robbins, AJC.com, 15 May 2026

Without accessible point-of-care diagnostics, clinicians lose the narrow window for meaningful intervention in a disease where severe cases may carry mortality rates approaching 50%. —Steve Brozak, Forbes.com, 15 May 2026

The Andes virus can have an incubation period of up to eight weeks, and a mortality rate of up to 50%, according to the World Health Organization. —Devi Shastri, Chicago Tribune, 13 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1855, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for mortality rate

• borosilicate
• decontaminate
• deoxycholate
• deteriorate
• differentiate
• diisocyanate
• dinoflagellate
• excommunicate
• incapacitate
• insubordinate
• intercorporate
• interpenetrate

Medical Definition

mortality rate

noun

: the ratio between deaths and individuals in a specified population and during a particular time period : the incidence of deaths in a given population during a defined time period (such as one year) that is typically expressed per 1000 or 100,000 individuals : death rate

an annual mortality rate of 15 deaths per 1000 people

Note: A crude mortality rate does not distinguish between specific causes of death or groups of individuals and measures the incidence of all deaths in a population during a given time period. More specific mortality rates are based on narrower categories of individuals or causes of death.

mortality rates of liver cancer patients

an infant mortality rate of 9 deaths per 1000 live births