in extremis
1
9.9
- idiom
- /ɪn ɛkˈstrɛmɪs/
- Formal
:
en extremis
- Senior Lifesaving came back to her, and she remembered how, in extremis, you were permitted to haul off and slug the struggling victim.
- even in extremis
- only in extremis
Examples
-
Well, a smart person doesn't have a credit card at all, or has one they use only in extremis.
Blog text (29) -
"Isn't that what doctors say when the patient is in extremis?
Fiction book (1992) -
Only in extremis should coalition forces cross the border into Pakistan.
Academic text (2011) -
I don't know why this should have called up an image of my mother in extremis, but it did.
Fiction book (1998) -
The eurozone now has a permanent rescue system and a central bank that, in extremis, will act as lender of last resort.
Blog text (34) -
In fact, they represent the tip of the iceberg, a manifestation of social distress lived in extremis.
Academic text (1995) -
If a competitor was in extremis, he downed whiskey or brandy.
Blog text (10) -
If nothing else, Lula's triumph demonstrated that the unspoken fears of instability and, in extremis, possible military intervention that had stymied previous attempts by the left to gain the presidency had, by 2002, abated.
Academic text (2005) -
In fact, his knuckles tightened on the belt that was his lifeline, and in extremis, Dick Latham smiled grimly as he realized what a very unpleasant man he was.
Fiction book (1990) -
The doctor rushed to her side, knowing she was in extremis and needed immediate help.
Synonyms
7
7.6
Very ill and almost dying
Antonyms
How Critical
Surface Forms
Morphology
in + extremis
The preposition 'in' is fully transparent, but 'extremis' is a Latin-form not found in ordinary English dictionaries, so a B1 learner knowing only the listed constituents would not have a familiar modern lexical item. They might guess a general meaning like 'in extreme circumstances' from similarity to 'extreme', but the specific idiomatic sense 'at the point of death' (or very near-death criticality) is a specialized usage that is not fully predictable without prior exposure.
Etymology
The phrase in extremis comes from Latin and literally means 'in the extreme', used for someone at the very end of life with doctors or priests at their side. That's why in extremis now means 'at the point of death' or in a very desperate situation.