matter of life and death

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

For them it has been a matter of life and death for decades—and that is the one thing no one is talking about.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 9, 2026

Successfully reforming the WTO is a matter of life and death for the organisation, warns the facilitator of talks on revamping the global trade body.

From Barron's • Feb. 4, 2026

“On extreme heat days, access to air conditioning can be a matter of life and death, and they should have the option to use it,” she said.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 4, 2025

"It really is a matter of life and death," said Sam Smethers, chief executive of the charity Surviving Economic Abuse.

From BBC • May 3, 2025

The calculation is similar to the one on false positive results in drug testing, and, like it, demonstrates that misinterpreting fractions can be a matter of life and death.

From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos