From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishlethalle‧thal /ˈliːθəl/ ●●○ adjective 1 KILLcausing death, or able to cause death → fatal a lethal dose of heroin a lethal weapon death by lethal injection a lethal cocktail of drink and pillslethal to These chemicals are lethal to fish.2 informalDANGEROUS likely to be powerful or dangerous – often used humorously They were all drinking lethal amounts of tequila! Higher taxes and higher inflation were a lethal combination.
Examples from the Corpus
lethal• The bite itself is painful, but never lethal.• That cocktail looks pretty lethal.• Kaczynski sought to build increasingly lethal bombs by improving his bomb design and his bomb-making techniques.• Potential lethal cardiac arrhythmias and convulsions are recognised complications of both iatrogenic and self inflicted overdoses.• A lethal cocktail of pollutants is being poured into Scotland's coastal waters, according to Greenpeace.• a lethal dose of heroin• If his execution proceeds as scheduled, he would become the first to die by lethal injection in California.• Death will come by lethal injection, rather than cyanide gas, since gassing has been challenged in California as unduly cruel.• California has executed four San Quentin inmates since the death penalty was reinstated in 1978, the last two by lethal injection.• More than 40,000 of these lethal machines were sold between 1986 and 1988.• The poison produced by the frog's skin is so lethal that it can paralyze a bird or a monkey immediately.• Most pesticides are lethal to earthworms on or near the surface.• Almost any sharp or pointed object can potentially be a lethal weapon.lethal dose• Some workers received lethal doses because the rest of the site was not evacuated.• What effect on pain might, say, three-quarters of the lethal dose have had?• Shipman was convicted last year of murdering 15 female patients with lethal doses of diamorphine.• Usually one of Robert's business prospects would be invited for a lethal dose of glamour.• The river still carries a lethal dose of poisons.• Operators received lethal doses of radiation while needlessly reconnecting the water supply to the devastated reactor.• The prison staff member will then begin to administer lethal doses of three chemicals.a lethal combination• Together however, these factors can prove a lethal combination.• The little church has suffered from the rigours of time and town planning, normally a lethal combination, and survived.Origin lethal (1500-1600) Latin lethalis, from lethum “death”, from letum (influenced by Greek lethe; → LETHARGIC) 