in extremis
At death's door
In extremis is Latin for "in the final moments" or "at the point of death." A priest administers last rites to someone in extremis.
The phrase extends to any desperate circumstance or last resort: The company, in extremis, sold off its flagship brand.
Pronounced roughly "in ex-TREE-miss."
Risking death
- graveSerious and worrying
- perilousFraught with danger
- acuteIntensely severe or perceptive
- desperateDriven by urgent need
precarious · critical condition · intensive care · resuscitation · code blue · vital signs · defibrillator · ventilator
Critical boundary point
cusp · limit · point of no return · final moments · at the end · terminal · last breath · deathbed
Final available option
- Hail MaryCatholic Marian invocation
- last-ditch effortFinal attempt before failure
- break glassDestroy transparent barrier
- escape hatchEmergency exit opening
lifeline · stopgap · salvage · clutch · do or die · all-or-nothing · backs against the wall · nothing to lose
life-threatening
Risking death
desperate · precarious · critical condition · intensive care · resuscitation · code blue · vital signs · defibrillator · ventilator · triage
brink
Critical boundary point
threshold · cusp · limit · point of no return · final moments · at the end · terminal · last breath · deathbed · final hour
last resort
Final available option
- Hail MaryCatholic Marian invocation
- last-ditch effortFinal attempt before failure
- break glassDestroy transparent barrier
escape hatch · lifeline · stopgap · salvage · clutch · do or die · all-or-nothing · backs against the wall · nothing to lose · grasp at straws
- Latin Termsa priori, ab initio, ad hoc, ad lib, bona fide
- Legal Latinab initio, bona fide, caveat emptor, certiorari, de facto
in extremishale and hearty
In excellent health
in the pink · healthy · robust · thriving · fit as a fiddle
in extremiscomfortable
Physically at ease
at ease · secure · safe and sound · stable · in clover
extreme, extremely, extremist, extremity, extrinsic, extremities, extremism, extremists, extrinsically