mortality rate

noun

plural mortality rates

: the ratio between deaths and individuals in a specified population and during a particular time period : the incidence of deaths in a given population during a defined time period (such as one year) that is typically expressed per 1000 or 100,000 individuals : death rate

an annual mortality rate of 15 deaths per 1000 people

Note: A crude mortality rate does not distinguish between specific causes of death or groups of individuals and measures the incidence of all deaths in a population during a given time period. More specific mortality rates are based on narrower categories of individuals or causes of death.

an infant mortality rate of 9 deaths per 1000 live births

mortality rates of lung cancer patients

infectious disease mortality rates

Examples of mortality rate in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Maternal mortality rates, particularly for Black and other women of color, continue to rise in the U.S. — with these moms three times more likely to die due to pregnancy and childbirth complications. —Aisha Nyandoro, Forbes.com, 30 Apr. 2025

Authors of the study attributed the country's overall decrease in mortality rates to national improvements in sanitation, tobacco policies and health care, specifically calling out the progress made in terms of preventing cardiovascular disease, cancer and other illnesses since 1900. —Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 29 Apr. 2025

Those populations who have more of these proteins in their daily diet lower their risk of chronic diseases and have lower average mortality rates. —Stephanie Edwards, Discover Magazine, 18 Apr. 2025

Black women have the highest maternal mortality rates (50.3 deaths per 100,000 live births as of 2023) and face higher rates of untreated mental health conditions than other races, while access to affordable health care remains increasingly difficult to obtain. —India Espy-Jones, Essence, 7 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1855, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for mortality rate

• borosilicate
• decontaminate
• deoxycholate
• deteriorate
• differentiate
• diisocyanate
• dinoflagellate
• excommunicate
• incapacitate
• insubordinate
• intercorporate
• interpenetrate

Medical Definition

mortality rate

noun

: the ratio between deaths and individuals in a specified population and during a particular time period : the incidence of deaths in a given population during a defined time period (such as one year) that is typically expressed per 1000 or 100,000 individuals : death rate

an annual mortality rate of 15 deaths per 1000 people

Note: A crude mortality rate does not distinguish between specific causes of death or groups of individuals and measures the incidence of all deaths in a population during a given time period. More specific mortality rates are based on narrower categories of individuals or causes of death.

mortality rates of liver cancer patients

an infant mortality rate of 9 deaths per 1000 live births