adj, noun ·3 syllables ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   Any weapon that incapacitates without causing death.

Adjective

1. 1
   Not capable of causing death. not-comparable

   "a non-lethal dose"

2. 2
   Designed to cause incapacitation without causing death. not-comparable

   "Government officials think a universal malodor, or offensive odor, might prove effective as a non-lethal weapon."

Synonyms

All synonyms

less-lethal

Antonyms

All antonyms

lethal

Example

More examples

"Government officials think a universal malodor, or offensive odor, might prove effective as a non-lethal weapon."

Etymology

From non- + lethal.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.