death-blow

death-blow

A knight delivers a death-blow to the dragon with his sword.

Definition
  1. Noun:
    • A decisive or fatal action: "death-blow" refers to an act or event that causes the end of something, often something abstract like a plan, hope, or enterprise. It is commonly used metaphorically to describe a critical setback or termination.
    • A literal fatal blow: In a physical sense, "death-blow" means a strike or hit that causes immediate death.
Usage Examples
  • Noun:
    • The scandal dealt a death-blow to his political career. (The scandal was the decisive action that ended his career.)
    • The boxer delivered a death-blow to his opponent in the final round. (A literal fatal strike in a boxing match.)
    • The new law was a death-blow to the small business. (The law caused the termination of the business.)
Advanced Usage

  • "to strike a death-blow": to deliver a decisive or fatal action.

    • The economic recession struck a death-blow to the company's expansion plans. (The recession ended the plans definitively.)

  • "to be a death-blow to": to cause the end or ruin of something.

    • The discovery of fraud was a death-blow to the charity's reputation. (The discovery ruined the charity's reputation.)
Variants and Related Words
  • Deathblow (n): alternative spelling (one word) with the same meaning.
    • The failure of the merger was a deathblow to the partnership. (The failure ended the partnership.)
  • Deathblow is not used as an adjective or verb; it remains a noun.
Synonyms
  • Coup de grâce: a final, decisive blow or act that ends something.
  • Fatal blow: a strike that causes death or ruin.
  • Killing stroke: a decisive action that terminates something.
Phrasal Verbs
  • None directly associated with "death-blow" as a noun. However, the verb phrase "to deal a death-blow" is common.
    • The scandal dealt a death-blow to her reputation. (The scandal caused her reputation's end.)
Related Idioms
  • The final nail in the coffin: an event or action that finally ends something that has been failing.
    • The lost contract was the final nail in the coffin for the struggling firm. (The lost contract was the death-blow.)
  • To put the last nail in the coffin: to deliver the final, decisive action that ends something.
    • The resignation put the last nail in the coffin of the project. (The resignation was the death-blow.)