presumed dead
idiom
: believed to be dead
After the earthquake several people were missing and presumed dead.
Examples of presumed dead in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Before the latest hostage bodies were handed over to the Red Cross, Hamas had handed over four coffins of dead hostages, leaving at least 23 presumed dead and one unaccounted for, stillin the Gaza Strip.
—
Maayan Lubell, USA Today, 14 Oct. 2025
Her body has never been found and she is presumed dead.
—Lillian Metzmeier, Louisville Courier Journal, 29 Sep. 2025
He was presumed dead after his ship, the USS Hull, sank amid a typhoon in the Philippine Sea in December 1944, eight months before the end of the war.
—Robert Salonga, Mercury News, 23 Sep. 2025
He has not been seen in several years and is presumed dead, but his legacy lives on.
—Lilit Marcus, CNN Money, 23 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for presumed dead
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Maayan Lubell, USA Today, 14 Oct. 2025
Her body has never been found and she is presumed dead.
—Lillian Metzmeier, Louisville Courier Journal, 29 Sep. 2025
He was presumed dead after his ship, the USS Hull, sank amid a typhoon in the Philippine Sea in December 1944, eight months before the end of the war.
—Robert Salonga, Mercury News, 23 Sep. 2025
He has not been seen in several years and is presumed dead, but his legacy lives on.
—Lilit Marcus, CNN Money, 23 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for presumed dead
Cite this Entry
“Presumed dead.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/presumed%20dead. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share