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noun

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective mortal differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of mortal are deadly, fatal, and lethal. While all these words mean "causing or capable of causing death," mortal implies that death has occurred or is inevitable.

a mortal wound

When might deadly be a better fit than mortal?

While in some cases nearly identical to mortal, deadly applies to an established or very likely cause of death.

a deadly disease

When is fatal a more appropriate choice than mortal?

The words fatal and mortal can be used in similar contexts, but fatal stresses the inevitability of what has in fact resulted in death or destruction.

fatal consequences

Where would lethal be a reasonable alternative to mortal?

In some situations, the words lethal and mortal are roughly equivalent. However, lethal applies to something that is bound to cause death or exists for the destruction of life.

lethal gas

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of mortal
Adjective
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts noted after the Game 4 loss that Ohtani appeared mortal. Barry M. Bloom, Sportico.com, 2 Nov. 2025 In Latter-day Saint theology, people live as spirits in a pre-mortal world. NPR, 31 Oct. 2025
Noun
It’s set in a land split in two – Starside is where the magical, powerful immortals live, and Stormside is where mortals scramble for even just a taste of that magic. Clare Mulroy, USA Today, 12 Sep. 2025 Trent Williams looked like a mortal in Week 1 and had a noticeable limp on Wednesday. Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 10 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for mortal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mortal
Adjective
  • He’s sent to the deadly planet Genna, where every flora and fauna has evolved to be as lethal as possible, and given the seemingly impossible task of killing a fierce creature known as the Kalisk.
    Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 7 Nov. 2025
  • How Nashville police got involved Nashville Police Chief John Drake said the department's specialized investigation unit saw a rise in violent crime two years ago, including non-lethal shootings and homicides connected to the MS-13 gang.
    Craig Shoup, Nashville Tennessean, 7 Nov. 2025
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
  • During the demonstration, Archdeacon, dressed in a suit and tie, showed his fellow surgeons how to implant the plates and screws of the Pro into a model of human pelvic bones.
    Elizabeth B. Kim, Cincinnati Enquirer, 12 Nov. 2025
  • No human journalist was harmed in this experiment.
    CA Earthquake Bot, Sacbee.com, 12 Nov. 2025
Adjective
  • There are guns, horses, ghosts, a primal struggle for survival in hostile terrain, family feuds and a steadily intensifying sense of mortal threat, as Old Porch’s ambition and psychopathy escalate the drama.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 Nov. 2025
  • Fire department suffering low morale When Washington was fired, City Manager Sheryl Long blamed him for creating a hostile work environment for female firefighters and for failing to improve the department's workplace culture.
    Aaron Valdez, Cincinnati Enquirer, 6 Nov. 2025
Noun
  • For every additional person $109 would be added.
    Daniel McFadin, Arkansas Online, 6 Nov. 2025
  • As a childless person who doesn’t teach I’ve been happily unaware that, due to standardized testing requirements that favor close reads of excerpts over whole books, there’s an entire generation of students who have very little contextual framework for the literature they’re being taught in school.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
  • 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
  • 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
  • The cemetery of good but dead laws is infinite; the main thing is that social forces exist.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 Nov. 2025
  • These ghosts, which take the form of their dead friends, are mostly just goofy, with the shoddy special effects and glowy auras giving the whole thing a distinctly Haunted Mansion vibe; critically, the threat never feels real, which undermines any tension.
    Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 10 Nov. 2025
Adjective
  • In a recent Instagram post, Kardashian laughed off negative reviews of the show, which also stars Sarah Paulson, Naomi Watts and Glenn Close, has been receiving from fans.
    Lori A Bashian, FOXNews.com, 9 Nov. 2025
  • People with a nonfunctioning ANGPTL3 gene — which Natarajan says applies to about 1 in 250 people in the US — have lifelong levels of low LDL cholesterol and triglycerides without any apparent negative consequences.
    Sandee LaMotte, CNN Money, 8 Nov. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Mortal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mortal. Accessed 13 Nov. 2025.

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