Russian roulette

noun

: an act of bravado consisting of spinning the cylinder of a revolver loaded with one cartridge, pointing the muzzle at one's own head, and pulling the trigger

: something resembling Russian roulette in its potential for disaster

taking cocaine is playing Russian roulette—

Jonathan Nicholas

Examples of Russian roulette in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

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.

After the Recruiter ups the Russian roulette odds of dying to five in six, Woo-seok plays two rocks. —

Jennifer Zhan, Vulture, 26 Dec. 2024 Eventually, Gi-hun finds The Salesman and the two play another deadly game of Russian roulette, leading the salesman to take his own life. —

Esther Kang, People.com, 26 Dec. 2024 Moments after that deadly game, Gi-Hun finds The Salesman and his own game of Russian roulette with the facilitator is soundtracked by Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brightman’s version of Time To Say Goodbye. —

Peter White, Deadline, 26 Dec. 2024 Decision-makers in the Middle East should ask themselves whether playing Russian roulette with nuclear reactors is worth the risk. —

Bennett Ramberg, Foreign Affairs, 25 May 2015 See all Example Sentences for Russian roulette

Word History

First Known Use

1937, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler

The first known use of Russian roulette was in 1937

See more words from the same year

Cite this Entry

Style

“Russian roulette.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Russian%20roulette. Accessed 15 Jan. 2025.

Copy Citation