x

Folder Sign In:

Incorrect Username / Password

Email Address:

 

Password:

 

Create New Account      Password Reminder

x

Folder Sign In:

You've Successfully Logged In!

x

Create New Account:

You do not need to sign in to use this database. However, signing in gains you access to a personal folder that you can use to save items. These items will be archived and made available to you during future database sessions.

Email Address:

 

Password:

 

Already Have Account      Password Reminder

x

Folder Sign In:

You've Successfully Created a New Account!

x

Password Reminder:

Enter your email address and we will send you your password for your Saved Items Folder Account Sign In.

E-mail Address:

 

x

Password Reminder:

Reminder Email sent!

x

E-mail Article:

Send this article to the following E-mail address. Use commas to separate multiple addresses.

E-mail Address:

 

x

E-mail Article:

Article sent!

x
Citation Information
How to Cite
Ammer, Christine. "at/near death's door." Writer's Reference Center. Facts On File, Inc. Web. 15 Apr. 2025. <http://fofweb.infobase.com/wrc/Detail.aspx?iPin=DOC00595>.
x
Record URL
To refer to this page or share this page with others, copy and paste this link:
http://fofweb.infobase.com/wrc/Detail.aspx?iPin=DOC00595

at/near death's door

Definition 
Moribund, dangerously ill. Presumably this metaphor originated in the idea that death was a state of being one could enter, that is, an afterlife. It was used by Miles Coverdale (an early translator of the Bible) in A Spyrytuall Pearle (1550), "To bring unto death's door," and was repeated by Shakespeare and eventually, in more secular context, by later writers. Eric Partridge deemed it a cliché by about 1850.

Return to Top Return to Top