deathtrap

[ deth-trap ]

noun

1. a structure, place, or situation where there is imminent risk of death:

   They escaped from the deathtrap just before it exploded.

Word History and Origins

Origin of deathtrap¹

First recorded in 1825–35; death + trap ¹

Example Sentences

But a newly resurfaced engineering study reveals another problem: Major structural deficiencies could turn the aging building into a deathtrap in the event of an earthquake.

From Los Angeles Times

The tunnel would turn the delta into “a deathtrap for salmon,” Nelson says, and the Sites Reservoir would degrade downstream waters, possibly increasing temperatures.

From Los Angeles Times

The blaze had swept through a government property at 80 Albert Street, a deathtrap of a building where squatters pilfered electricity, built indoor shacks out of cardboard and cooked on paraffin stoves.

From New York Times

The Fire Brigades Union said that barges housing asylum seekers were “a potential deathtrap,” describing the policy as “cruel and reckless.”

From New York Times

Marlon and Florence warned them that Wyoming would be a deathtrap, with every major city swarming with infected and the wilderness strewn with corpses.

From New York Times