What does "fatal" mean?
A fatality; an event that leads to death.
Fatal
/ˈfeɪ.təl/ adj, noun
adj, noun ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A fatality; an event that leads to death.
- Grammar: fatal is listed as adj, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: disastrous, accidental, adventitious, aleatory.
- Useful contrasts: beneficial, benign, harmless.
- Usage evidence: Life is a fatal sexually transmitted disease.
How to use "fatal"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "fatal" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "fatal" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "fatal" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "fatal" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "fatal" is acting as adj, noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "disastrous" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "fatal", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A fatality; an event that leads to death.
"For this same period there have been four fatals and 44 nonfatals in gassy mines."
- 2 A fatal error; a failure that causes a program to terminate.
Adjective
- 1 Proceeding from, or appointed by, fate or destiny. archaic, rare
"She mixed furniture with the same fatal profligacy as she mixed drinks, and this outrageous contact between things which were intended by Nature to be kept poles apart gave her an inexpressible thrill."
- 2 Foreboding death or great disaster. archaic, rare
"Such a scandal as the prosecution of a brother for forgery—with a verdict of guilty—is a most truly horrible, deplorable, fatal thing. It takes the respectability out of a family perhaps at a critical moment, when the family is just assuming the robes of respectability: […] it is a black spot which all the soaps ever advertised could never wash off."
- 3 Causing death or destruction.
"a fatal wound; a fatal disease; that fatal day; a fatal mistake"
- 4 Causing a sudden end to the running of a program.
"a fatal error; a fatal exception"
Adjective
- 1 controlled or decreed by fate; predetermined wordnet
- 2 having momentous consequences; of decisive importance wordnet
- 3 bringing death wordnet
- 4 (of events) having extremely unfortunate or dire consequences; bringing ruin wordnet
Antonyms
Example
"Life is a fatal sexually transmitted disease."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "fatal"?
Common synonyms include: disastrous, accidental, adventitious, aleatory, appointed, approaching.
How do you use "fatal" in a sentence?
Life is a fatal sexually transmitted disease.
How do you pronounce "fatal"?
Pronounced /ˈfeɪ.təl/.
Etymology
From Middle French fatal, from Latin fātālis (“fatal”).