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fatal

adj. · n.
US //ˈfeɪtəɫ// UK //fˈeɪtəl// fa·tal
  1. 1 causing death (adj.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    causing someone to die.

    causing or capable of causing death; lethal.

    Example

    The driver was lucky to survive such a fatal accident on the highway.

    Example

    The patient had contracted a fatal dose of the toxin, leaving the medical team with very few options for intervention.

    Usage

    Commonly collocates with 'accident', 'blow', 'dose', or 'illness'.
  2. 2 leading to failure (adj.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    causing something to fail completely or have a very bad result.

    leading to failure, disaster, or ruin; describing a mistake that cannot be corrected.

    Example

    Forgetting to check the contract was a fatal mistake for the small company.

    Example

    The general's inability to secure the supply lines proved to be a fatal flaw in his otherwise brilliant strategy.

    Usage

    Often used with abstract nouns like 'flaw', 'error', or 'mistake'.
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  1. 3 software crash (adj.)
    C1 Advanced Technical Computing

    describing a computer error that is so bad the program has to stop immediately.

    denoting a processing error that results in the immediate termination of a program or operating system.

    Example

    The system crashed after a fatal error occurred during the update.

    Example

    The application encountered a fatal exception when it attempted to access a restricted memory address, forcing an immediate shutdown.

    Usage

    Almost exclusively used in the phrase 'fatal error' or 'fatal exception'.
  2. 4 destined (adj.)
    C2 Proficiency Archaic Literary

    decided by fate or destiny.

    proceeding from or appointed by fate; inevitable.

    Example

    He felt that this fatal meeting had been planned by the stars.

    Example

    The hero marched toward his fatal encounter with the dragon, resigned to the destiny the oracles had foretold.

    Teacher's tip

    This sense is rare in modern speech; students will mostly encounter it in older literature or poetry.
  3. 5 a death (n.)
    C1 Advanced Formal

    an event or accident that results in a death.

    an occurrence or accident resulting in death; a fatality.

    Example

    The police reported that there were no fatals in the multi-car crash.

    Example

    While the wreckage was extensive, emergency responders were relieved to confirm there were no fatals at the scene.

    Teacher's tip

    Using 'fatal' as a noun is much less common than using 'fatality'; it is often found in police or emergency service jargon.
Origin

From Middle French fatal, from Latin fātālis (“fatal”).

Word family

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