casualty
noun
ca·su·al·ty
ˈka-zhəl-tē 
ˈkazh-wəl-,
ˈka-zhə-wəl-
plural casualties
1
a
: a military person lost through death, wounds, injury, sickness, internment, or capture or through being missing in action
The army sustained heavy casualties.
b
: a person or thing injured, lost, or destroyed : victim
the ex-senator was a casualty of the last election
2
: serious or fatal accident : disaster
losses from fire, storm, or other casualty—
J. S. Seidman
J. S. Seidman
Examples of casualty in a Sentence
a low number of casualties
the real casualties in the war against drugs are millions of innocent children
Recent Examples on the Web
Russia also struck Ukraine’s eastern Kharkiv region with drones causing casualties and damage, local authorities said Saturday.
—Samya Kullab, Chicago Tribune, 25 Jan. 2025
Analyst Mariana Perez Mora said the pick is somewhat contrarian given that investors see the company, which is involved in modernizing the federal government’s information technology systems, as a potential casualty of DOGE’s cuts.
—Brian Evans, CNBC, 24 Jan. 2025
In 2024, the UN documented 1,420 incidents of settler violence resulting in casualties and/or property damage in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
—Tim Lister and Eugenia Yosef, CNN, 23 Jan. 2025
The cobra, once a symbol of nature’s awe-inspiring grandeur, became a casualty of war, its life ended not by natural predators or disease, but by humanity’s conflict.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 23 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for casualty 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Samya Kullab, Chicago Tribune, 25 Jan. 2025
Analyst Mariana Perez Mora said the pick is somewhat contrarian given that investors see the company, which is involved in modernizing the federal government’s information technology systems, as a potential casualty of DOGE’s cuts.
—Brian Evans, CNBC, 24 Jan. 2025
In 2024, the UN documented 1,420 incidents of settler violence resulting in casualties and/or property damage in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
—Tim Lister and Eugenia Yosef, CNN, 23 Jan. 2025
The cobra, once a symbol of nature’s awe-inspiring grandeur, became a casualty of war, its life ended not by natural predators or disease, but by humanity’s conflict.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 23 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for casualty
Dictionary Entries Near casualty
Cite this Entry
“Casualty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/casualty. Accessed 31 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
casualty
noun
ca·su·al·ty
ˈkazh-əl-tē
ˈkazh-(ə-)wəl-
plural casualties
1
: a serious or fatal accident : disaster
2
a
: a military person lost (as by death or capture) during warfare
b
: a person or thing injured, lost, or destroyed
Medical Definition
casualty
noun
ca·su·al·ty
ˈkazh-əl-tē, ˈkazh-(ə-)wəl-
plural casualties
1
: a serious or fatal accident
2
: a military person lost through death, wounds, injury, sickness, internment, or capture or through being missing in action
3
a
: injury or death from accident
b
: one injured or killed (as by accident)
Legal Definition
casualty
noun
ca·su·al·ty
ˈka-zhəl-tē, ˈka-zhə-wəl-
plural casualties
1
: an unfortunate occurrence
especially
: a serious and often disastrous accident
conversion of property…arising from fire, storm, shipwreck, or other casualty —Internal Revenue Code
Internal Revenue Code 2
: something lost, stolen, damaged, or destroyed see also casualty gain at gain, casualty loss at loss
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share