sudden death

noun

Sports.

1. an overtime period in which a tied contest is won and play is stopped immediately after one of the contestants scores, as in football, or goes ahead, as in golf.

sudden death

noun

1. (in sports, etc) an extra game or contest to decide the winner of a tied competition
2. an unexpected or quick death

Other Word Forms

• sudden-death adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of sudden death¹

First recorded in 1825–35

Example Sentences

Days after Trachtenberg’s sudden death, the New York City Office of the Chief Medical Examiner said the actor’s official cause and manner of death would remain undetermined, citing her family’s request.

From Los Angeles Times

But Walter’s sudden death by suicide has left everyone in his circle, including Apollo, shocked and grieving.

From Salon

Quintanilla-Perez was born in 1971 in Lake Jackson, Texas, and became one of the most influential Latin artists of all time before her sudden death at just 23.

From Los Angeles Times

There were 21 goals across four games, three of which went to extra time and two all the way to sudden death in a shootout.

From BBC

It can result in the sudden deaths of previously healthy animals including sheep and cattle.

From BBC