be at death’s door
expression · Collocation / phrase C1
Plain meaning
to be extremely ill or close to dying
Exam-register meaning
In exam reading or discussion, this expression signals to be extremely ill or close to dying rather than a literal meaning.
In context
naturalThe phrase “be at death’s door” fitted the situation perfectly.
examIn higher-level reading passages, “be at death’s door” may be used to show to be extremely ill or close to dying.
Common collocations
be at death’s dooruse “be at death’s door” in contextthe expression “be at death’s door”
Watch out
Do not translate “be at death’s door” word-for-word; learn it as a fixed expression and check whether it is suitable for formal writing.