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Today it means

lethal

sufficient to cause death

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Where does the word "lethal" come from? It comes from Latin letalis, and was adopted directly into English (1580s).

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Where does the word "lethal" come from? It comes from Latin letalis, and was adopted directly into English (1580s).

Lethal’s story begins in Latin: letalis meant “deadly.” From 'letum', death. It reached English by 1580s as lethal. 'lethal injection' dates from the 1970s. Today, lethal means sufficient to cause death.

  1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient letalis "deadly", from 'letum', death.
  2. Stage 2 · English · 1580s lethal "deadly", 'lethal injection' dates from the 1970s.

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