mortality
noun
mor·tal·i·ty
| \ mȯr-ˈta-lə-tē
\
\
Definition of mortality
1
: the quality or state of being mortal
Her husband's death reminded her of her own mortality.
2
: the death of large numbers (as of people or animals)
trying to reduce infant mortality
4
: the human race
that natural extinction to which all mortality is subject— Thomas Paine
5a
: the number of deaths in a given time or place
The mortality among the infected mounted daily.
b
: the proportion of deaths to population
a brain infection with a mortality rate of about 30 percent— Jane E. Brody
c
: the number lost or the rate of loss or failure
the mortality rate of small businesses
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Examples of mortality in a Sentence
a leading cause of mortality
Recent Examples on the Web
These include transport conditions, mortality rate, tattooing numbers and the removal of any sign of selfhood, heritage, customs, and cultural identity. — Wesley J. Smith, National Review, "Chimpanzee Liberation? Why Animal Rights and Human Rights Cannot Coexist," 15 Aug. 2019 If treated early, mortality rates drastically dropped, to 6 percent with REGN-EB3 and 11 percent with mAb114. — Catherine Kim, Vox, "Vox Sentences: One step closer to an Ebola cure," 15 Aug. 2019 Finland is one of the five countries with the lowest maternal mortality rates, and Finns have longer life expectancy than Americans. — Saskya Vandoorne And Melissa Bell, CNN, "The 'dark side' of Finland's famous free health care," 15 Aug. 2019 Overall, the mortality rate for patients treated with mAB114 was 34 percent, and 29 percent for REGN-EB3. — Lila Thulin, Smithsonian, "Researchers Have Finally Found an Effective Treatment for Ebola," 14 Aug. 2019 The data looked at measures like conventional delivery charges at hospitals, annual average infant-care costs, pediatricians per capita, midwives per capita and infant mortality rates. — Sonja Haller, USA TODAY, "Don't have a baby in these states if you want a big hospital bill, a lower quality of life," 13 Aug. 2019 The southern state also had the highest infant mortality rate in the country. — Rex Crum, The Mercury News, "Where does California rank for having a baby in the U.S.?," 12 Aug. 2019 The average mortality rate for Ebola has been about 50 percent, according to the WHO. — Claire Parker, Washington Post, "Ebola no longer ‘incurable,’ scientists say, after discovery of two highly effective drugs," 12 Aug. 2019 There has been no change in the human mortality rate in, oh, forever. — Mike Oliver | Moliver@al.com, al, "My Vinyl Countdown preparing or the last post -- I need another 30 months," 10 Aug. 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'mortality.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for mortality
mortality
noun
English Language Learners Definition of mortality
: the quality or state of being a person or thing that is alive and therefore certain to die : the quality or state of being mortal
: the death of a person, animal, etc.
: the number of deaths that occur in a particular time or place
See the full definition for mortality in the English Language Learners Dictionary
mortality
noun
mor·tal·i·ty
| \ mȯr-ˈtal-ət-ē
\
\
plural mortalities
Medical Definition of mortality
1
: the quality or state of being mortal
2a
: the number of deaths in a given time or place
b
: the proportion of deaths to population : death rate
— called also mortality rate
— compare fertility sense 2, morbidity sense 2Keep scrolling for more