do-or-die moment
1
6.0
- noun
- /duː ɔr daɪ ˈmoʊmənt/
- Informal
:
momento decisivo
- Before the final exam, she realized it was a do-or-die moment for her future.
The problem is now we are at a do or die moment and the fear of the do or die gets priced in.
- The problem is now we are at a do or die moment and the fear of the do or die gets priced in.
Examples
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In negotiations, this is the do-or-die moment where both parties need to reach an agreement.
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Those for me, it's a do or die moment, you know what I mean?
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The problem is now we are at a do or die moment and the fear of the do or die gets priced in.
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Before the guaranteed funding started last year, Demo Day was the do-or-die moment; either you raised money or you were done.
Blog text (32) -
That feeling hasn't gone away; there is still the feeling that this is a do-or-die moment for the country.
Blog text (12) -
This is definitely a do-or-die moment for the team to prove their capabilities.
Synonyms
95
4.6
A very serious situation where someone may not survive
4
6.7
A situation when you must succeed because failure is not allowed
1
6.4
A final desperate try to succeed when success seems unlikely
Antonyms
How High-Stakes
- Informal
1
6.0
4
5.5
9
5.3
- Formal
807
7.2
263
1.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
do-or-die + moment
The phrase signals an extreme choice: knowing 'do' and 'die' lets a learner infer an urgent, high-stakes situation where action is required, so part of the meaning is compositionally recoverable. However the sense is hyperbolic/metaphorical (not literal death) and relies on the idiomatic pattern 'do-or-die', so the full meaning ('must succeed or face failure') is not fully predictable without exposure.
Etymology
The phrase do-or-die moment comes from old battle orders where leaders told soldiers to 'do' the attack or 'die' trying, creating a strong life-or-death picture. That's why a do-or-die moment now means a time when you must 'succeed' or 'fail' under great pressure.