as in deadly
likely to cause or capable of causing death
we were lucky that the snake's venom wasn't lethal, and our friend turned out to be all right
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Recent Examples of lethal
In This Poison Heart, Briseis already struggles with controlling her unique, yet lethal command over plants.
—
Brittany Johnson, PEOPLE, 2 Nov. 2025
Los Angeles Police Department’s Central Division announced early Sunday that less-lethal munitions and tear gas had been authorized around Olympic Boulevard and Grand Avenue.
—Stephen Sorace, FOXNews.com, 2 Nov. 2025
Wuornos, who was found guilty of six murders and received six death sentences, was executed by lethal injection on October 9, 2002, after a decade on death row.
—Jason Pham, StyleCaster, 31 Oct. 2025
Wuornos was executed by lethal injection in October 2002, according to a New York Times obituary.
—Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for lethal
Brittany Johnson, PEOPLE, 2 Nov. 2025
Los Angeles Police Department’s Central Division announced early Sunday that less-lethal munitions and tear gas had been authorized around Olympic Boulevard and Grand Avenue.
—Stephen Sorace, FOXNews.com, 2 Nov. 2025
Wuornos, who was found guilty of six murders and received six death sentences, was executed by lethal injection on October 9, 2002, after a decade on death row.
—Jason Pham, StyleCaster, 31 Oct. 2025
Wuornos was executed by lethal injection in October 2002, according to a New York Times obituary.
—Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for lethal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lethal
Adjective
-
The section of the Guadalupe River where the camp is located has long been prone to deadly flash flooding.—
Shambhavi Rimal,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
12 Nov. 2025
-
The deadliest assault on a school occurred in 2014 when Taliban gunmen killed 154 people, mostly children, at an army-run school in Peshawar.—
NPR,
NPR,
11 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Yet a drumbeat of Mamdani’s past statements about Israel did not prove politically fatal in New York City in 2025.—
Philip Elliott,
Time,
5 Nov. 2025
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The special explores theories about why the thieves targeted specific displays, who orchestrated this brazen operation and which fatal flaws in their plan ultimately led to their capture.—
Peter White,
Deadline,
5 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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For all their sophistication—transforming a poisonous root and its leaves into a whole range of delicacies is no mean feat—for years such dishes were seen by the city’s elite as the food of poverty.—
Michael Snyder,
Travel + Leisure,
5 Nov. 2025
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By appointing a man who was deeply unpopular with fans by the end of his reign so recently, though, Wolves would have been condemning him and his players to working in a poisonous environment from day one.—
Steve Madeley,
New York Times,
3 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Lethal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lethal. Accessed 13 Nov. 2025.
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