fatality

fatality — noun

1. a death that results from a sudden, violent event such as a car crash, a buildin

1.nounB2
Definition

a death that results from a sudden, violent event such as a car crash, a building fire, or an armed attack; the word can also refer to the person who dies in such an event

Example

The highway patrol reported three fatalities on the icy road near Springfield.

collocation: report / cause fatalities

Among the fifteen passengers on the bus, Sayaka's grandfather was the only fatality.

Common collocations
  • traffic fatalities
  • road fatalities
  • result in fatalities
  • cause fatalities
  • multiple fatalities
Synonyms
  • death

    the general term for dying; 'fatality' is narrower, used only for accidental or violent death

  • casualty

    includes both those killed and those injured; preferred in military and disaster contexts

Antonyms
  • survival

    escaping death in a dangerous situation

Grammar Patterns

fatality + from + [cause]

usually plural in news reports

Usage Note

Frequently used in the plural when reporting multiple deaths in accidents or disasters. Common in news reporting — typical collocates include 'road fatalities', 'traffic fatalities', and 'result in fatalities'.

Common Mistakes

The accident caused three fatalities of people.
The accident caused three fatalities.
'fatality' already means a death; adding 'of people' is redundant.
There was a fatality of a man in the crash.
There was one fatality in the crash.
'fatality' already includes the person who died; do not add 'of a man'.

2. a measure of how likely a disease, poison, or dangerous situation is to kill the

2.nounB2
Definition

a measure of how likely a disease, poison, or dangerous situation is to kill the people who are affected by it

Example

The fatality of the infection worried doctors because it killed nearly half of all patients.

uncountable: the fatality of [disease killer]

Selim compared the fatality rates of three different flu strains for his research paper.

collocation: fatality rate

Common collocations
  • high fatality
  • low fatality
  • fatality rate
  • the fatality of a disease
Synonyms
  • lethality

    a more technical or scientific term for the capacity to cause death

  • deadliness

    a more informal and general word for the ability to cause death

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

the fatality of [disease / poison / danger]

fatality rate

Usage Note

Uncountable in this sense — do not use 'a fatality' when you mean deadliness. The common compound 'fatality rate' refers to the proportion of deaths among all confirmed cases of a disease.

Common Mistakes

The fatality of the disease is very strong.
The fatality of the disease is very high.
'high' and 'low' are the natural collocates for deadliness, not 'strong' or 'weak'.
This virus has a high fatality.
This virus has a high fatality rate.
'fatality rate' is the standard term when referring to the proportion of deaths.

3. the idea that events in life are fixed in advance and that people cannot change

3.nounC1
Definition

the idea that events in life are fixed in advance and that people cannot change them; a feeling of accepting that bad things will happen because fate decides everything

Example

After the war, a strange fatality took hold of the survivors — they felt nothing they did mattered.

uncountable: sense / mood of fatality

Rohan rejected the fatality his grandfather preached and worked hard every day to improve his life.

Common collocations
  • sense of fatality
  • mood of fatality
  • belief in fatality
Synonyms
  • fatalism

    the more common term for the philosophical belief that events are predetermined

  • predestination

    a specific religious doctrine within Christianity and Islam that God has decided everything in advance

Antonyms
  • free will

    the belief that people can make their own choices and shape their own lives

Grammar Patterns

sense / mood of fatality

Usage Note

Uncountable and formal in this sense. Often appears in literary, philosophical, or historical writing. Distinguish from sense 1 (a countable death) — sense 3 is an abstract belief or mood, never used with numbers like 'three fatalities'.

Common Mistakes

He has a fatality that nothing will work out.
He has a sense of fatality that nothing will work out.
this sense is uncountable and usually appears in phrases like 'sense of fatality' or 'mood of fatality'.
The old man believed in fatality of everything.
The old man believed in fatality.
do not add 'of everything'; 'fatality' alone expresses the full concept of predetermined fate.

Word family

  • fatal
    adjectiveB2
  • fate
    nounB1
  • fatalism
    nounC1
  • fatalist
    nounC1
  • fatalistic
    adjectiveC1
  • fatally
    adverbB2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Death is the broadest term, covering all causes — natural illness, old age, accident, or violence. Fatality narrows the meaning to deaths caused by accidents, violence, or disasters; it is the standard term in traffic and workplace safety reports. Casualty is broader than fatality because it includes both killed and injured people; it appears most often in military and disaster contexts ('the battle caused heavy casualties'). Loss of life is a more formal or emotional synonym for multiple fatalities, common in news headlines. Victim refers to the person who suffers harm (injury, loss, or death), not specifically to the death itself — a victim of a car crash may survive. For example, a news report might say 'three fatalities in a highway crash,' while the hospital treats 'five casualties, two critical.'

death ↗casualty ↗loss of lifevictim ↗

Common collocations

Phrases

  • fatality rate

Prepositions

  • fatality from (sense 1)
  • fatality of (senses 2 and 3)

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Fatality comes from the Latin word fatalitas, meaning 'fate' or 'destiny,' which is based on fatum ('that which has been spoken by the gods'). It entered English through French fatalité around the 1500s. The earliest meaning was about fate and predestination — the idea that certain events are destined to happen. By the 1800s, the modern sense of 'death resulting from an accident or disaster' became common, especially in insurance and safety reporting. The older, philosophical sense survives in literary and formal use.