- causing or ending in death
- a fatal accident/blow/illness
- a potentially fatal form of cancer
- If she gets ill again it could prove fatal.
Extra ExamplesTopics Health problemsc1- He has not driven since his nearly fatal accident earlier this year.
- Her disregard of this advice was ultimately fatal.
- The disease is potentially fatal.
- This kind of accident is almost always fatal for the pilot.
- a chemical which is invariably fatal to small mammals
- He suffered fatal injuries when he was struck by a car.
- Most farmers are alert to the potentially fatal consequences of an overturning tractor.
- They were involved in a fatal accident.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- be
- prove
- nearly
- always
- invariably
- …
- for
- to
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- causing disaster or failure
- a fatal error/mistake
- Any delay would be fatal.
- There was a fatal flaw in the plan.
- It'd be fatal to try and stop them now.
Extra ExamplesTopics Difficulty and failurec1- a possibly fatal setback to his plans
- Tax increases have proved fatal to the nation's business community.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- be
- prove
- absolutely
- ultimately
- to
Word Originlate Middle English (in the senses ‘destined by fate’ and ‘ominous’): from Old French, or from Latin fatalis, from fatum ‘that which has been spoken’, from fari ‘speak’.
Check pronunciation:
fatal