Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun Something that is ultimately ruinous, destructive, or fatal.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun A
kiss on thecheek that signifies thedeath of the receiver, as delivered by a mob boss or one with such influence. - noun informal, idiomatic Something that may seem good and
favourable but that actually bringsruin to hopes, plans, etc.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun something that is ruinous
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
[From the kiss by which Judas betrayed Jesus (Mark 14:44–46) .]
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Biblical: Judas betraying Jesus with a kiss.
Support
Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word kiss of death.
Examples
Sorry, no example sentences found.
whichbe commented on the word kiss of death
When a paint brush is placed so that its brush-end is down, and it is abandoned long enough so that its bristles are permanently bent, it is often called the kiss of death! (From ArtLex)
June 5, 2008