Definition of

Lethal

The first thing we are going to do is know the etymological origin of the term lethal. Specifically, it derives from Latin, exactly emanating from the word “letalis” which, in turn, derives from “letum”, which can be translated as “death”.

The adjective lethal allows you to describe what is deadly : that is, that causes or can cause death . The lethal, therefore, is potentially lethal .

LethalFor example: “The man suffered a lethal infection that ended his life in just a few days,” “The criminal gang had a large arsenal of lethal weapons,” “A young man was detained at the capital's airport with an explosive "lethal hidden in a bag."

Other words that can be used as synonyms for lethal are pernicious, poisonous, harmful or offensive. On the contrary, among its antonyms are terms such as enlivening, invigorating, stimulating, reviving or invigorating, among others.

The notion of lethal dose , in this framework, refers to the level of toxicity of radiation or a substance. Generally this degree is established from the study of a certain sample population, in which a percentage, at a certain dose, dies.

The lethal dose is usually represented with the letters LD , followed by a figure that indicates the percentage of individuals in a population that this dose kills. LD50 , then, reveals that the dose will cause the death of 50% of the subjects.

Lethal injection , on the other hand, is a method of execution that causes the death of the condemned person through the intravenous delivery of a combination of drugs . Lethal injection first renders the person unconscious and then causes cardiorespiratory arrest, ending their life.

USA, China y Vietnam son tres países donde la execution a través de una inyección letal es legal. Esto indica que, cuando alguien es condenado a muerte, puede ser ultimado de este modo.

Specifically, Texas is where lethal injection is most commonly used to end the lives of criminals whom justice has sentenced to be executed. An injection that usually consists of pancuronium bromide, sodium thiopental and potassium chloride.

In the field of cinema, on many occasions, the adjective lethal has been used to give titles to some of their films. This would be the case, for example, of the feature film “Lethal Weapon”, which was released in 1987 under the direction of Richard Donner.

Actors Mel Gilson and Danny Glover are in charge of giving life to the main characters, two Los Angeles police officers who are very different from each other, but who make a good team when it comes to solving the most complicated cases. Such was the success of this film that three more parts would later arrive.

Other feature films that also used the term in question in their titles are “Lethal Revenge” (2010) or “Lethal Immersion” (2005).

In the field of sport , finally, someone who causes or can cause irreversible damage to the rival is mentioned as lethal: “With a lethal Messi, Barcelona defeated Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey final , ” The capital team is lethal in its stadium” , “Stephen Curry is lethal behind the three-point line” .