non-lethal

/ˌnɒnˈliː.θəl/ (bre, ipa) · /ˌnɑːnˈliː.θəl/ (ame, ipa)

non-lethal — adjective

1. designed or used in a way that hurts or stops a person without killing them, esp

1.形容詞B2
釋義

designed or used in a way that hurts or stops a person without killing them, especially when talking about weapons, force, or doses of a drug.

例句

Police in São Paulo fired non-lethal rubber bullets to break up the crowd.

attributive: non-lethal + weapon noun

Haruto's grandfather survived the snake bite because the small garden snake's venom was non-lethal.

predicative: be + non-lethal

同義詞
  • nonfatal

    very close in meaning; often preferred for injuries and accidents rather than weapons

  • less-lethal

    preferred by police and military reports because it admits these tools can still kill

  • harmless

    broader and less technical; covers anything safe, not just things that might otherwise kill

反義詞
  • lethal

    the direct opposite — capable of causing death

  • deadly

    stronger, more everyday word for something that kills

文法句型

non-lethal + noun

be + non-lethal

用法筆記

Frequently attributive before nouns about force or weaponry (`non-lethal weapon / force / dose / round`). Often paired in real reports with a hedge such as `usually` or `generally`, because in practice even non-lethal tools can occasionally kill.

常見錯誤

❌The medicine is non-lethal to take every day.
✅The medicine is safe to take every day.
💡use 'non-lethal' for things that could plausibly kill (weapons, doses, venom), not for ordinary safe items.
❌Roya gave him a non-lethal look.
✅Roya gave him a harmless look.
💡'non-lethal' is literal about death; figurative uses sound odd.