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Glite Dictionary
deathtrap

deathtrap

8 8.2
A very unsafe building that could cause death or serious injury
  • noun
  • /ˈdɛθtræp/
translation icon : trampa mortal
  • The abandoned building has become a notorious deathtrap due to its unstable structure and lack of safety measures.
  • deathtrap of a car
  • deathtrap place
  • become a deathtrap

After all, the deathtrap AC system was only fit for frying humans.

Examples

  • - Look, this house was a deathtrap before we even got here!

    In the Woods (1999)

  • The ship looked like a deathtrap.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • The place is like a deathtrap, huh?

    Hot Tub Time Machine 2 (2015)

  • The entire planet is a deathtrap.

    Superman/Batman: Apocalypse (2010)

  • Oh, those kitchen stairs are a deathtrap.

    Happy Campers (2001)

  • Then I realize I'm inside a deathtrap.

    Blog text (20)

  • You knew this place was a deathtrap but you let us come down anyway, Lucho.

    The 33 (2015)

  • I'm sorry, Inspector but I've already lost one son to that deathtrap.

    Speed Racer (2008)

  • It is a deathtrap as lethal as the one we left behind, and we haven't the armament to fight our way in and out.

    Battlestar Galactica (1978)

  • The U.S. automakers, forced by the government, are making tiny underpowered deathtraps.

    Blog text (31)

Synonyms

hazard
vsdeathtrap
154 3.4

Something that can cause harm or danger

describes an extreme danger that is likely to cause death or serious injury
firetrap
vsdeathtrap
4 7.9

A building that is unsafe and hard to escape from in a fire

refers more widely to any very unsafe structure likely to cause death
flying coffin
vsdeathtrap
  • Informal
1 9.1

An unsafe plane that is likely to crash

applies to any structure that is extremely unsafe and likely to kill

How Dangerous

deathtrap
8 8.2
danger zone
13 3.8
dangerous
∞ 1.5
unsafe
93 1.1
safe space
14 4.5

Surface Forms

deathtrap singular
deathtraps plural

Morphology

deathtrap = death + trap (transparent) = death + trap

Direct compound of 'death' + 'trap' whose meaning is clearly a trap likely to cause death or serious injury.

Etymology

Deathtrap joins death ('the end of life') and trap ('a thing that catches'), giving a strong picture of something that can catch and kill you, and that's why the word is used for very unsafe buildings, vehicles, or places.