1.
life and death
The states of being alive and dead; matters of life and death.
生死の問題だ。
It's a matter of life and death.
彼の生死が分からない。
Whether he is alive or dead is unknown.
生死をかけた戦いだった。
It was a battle with life and death at stake.
生死の境をさまよった後、助かった。
After hovering between life and death, he was saved.
行方不明者の生死は何日たっても不明のままだった。
The missing person's fate remained unknown no matter how many days passed.
生死 combines 生 (life) and 死 (death). Used when life and death are at stake, or when someone's survival is in question.
COMMON EXPRESSIONS:
- 生死をかける: to stake one's life, to risk life and death
- 生死の境: the boundary between life and death
- 生死不明: unknown whether alive or dead
- 生死をさまよう: to hover between life and death
- 生死にかかわる: to be a matter of life and death
- 生死の問題: a life-and-death matter
REGISTER:
This is a serious, somewhat literary word. It appears frequently in news reports about disasters, accidents, and missing persons, as well as in dramatic or literary contexts. In everyday conversation, people are more likely to say 命にかかわる (to concern one's life) for less dramatic situations.
READING NOTE:
Always read as せいし, not しょうし or なまじに.