Phrase guide

death door

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

a door to the outside from the parlor or hall to allow for the movement of the dead; from the time when the wealthy would host their wakes and funerals in their own homes. It is a supplementary door to the main doors of the home, unconnected from exterior stairs or walkways. The death door existed to allow for the dead to move through doors without needing to use the doorways used by the living.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: US

Topics: architecture

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From death + door from being a door used for the dead.