widow-maker
noun
wid·ow-mak·er
ˈwi-dō-ˌmā-kər 
-də-
variants
or widow maker
or less commonly widowmaker
: something having the potential to cause sudden loss of life
"Our biggest worry is the mines," says Sgt. Darrell McCoy. The Third Platoon has been well trained to handle those widow-makers.—
David H. Hackworth
: such as
David H. Hackworth
a
: a loose limb hanging in or falling from a tree
Broken branches that are hung up high in the canopy are called widow makers, for good reason.—Jack Ewing
Jack Ewing
b
: a blockage in a branch of the left coronary artery that commonly causes a fatal heart attack
also
: the branch of the left coronary artery susceptible to fatal blockage
One of my arteries—one known as "the widowmaker"—was almost completely blocked. —Rob Mikulak
Rob Mikulak Examples of widow-maker in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
None of this ensures that shorting the dollar is suddenly pivoting from widow-maker trade to winner.
—William Pesek, Forbes.com, 31 Mar. 2025
Best-selling author and former flight attendant T.J. Newman’s latest thriller, Worst Case Scenario, begins with a commercial airliner pilot suffering a widow-maker heart attack shortly after takeoff.
—Shannon Carlin, TIME, 31 July 2024
The political widow-maker of the Israeli Left strikes again.
—Neri Zilber, Foreign Affairs, 23 May 2016
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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William Pesek, Forbes.com, 31 Mar. 2025
Best-selling author and former flight attendant T.J. Newman’s latest thriller, Worst Case Scenario, begins with a commercial airliner pilot suffering a widow-maker heart attack shortly after takeoff.
—Shannon Carlin, TIME, 31 July 2024
The political widow-maker of the Israeli Left strikes again.
—Neri Zilber, Foreign Affairs, 23 May 2016
Cite this Entry
“Widow-maker.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/widow-maker. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
widow-maker
noun
wid·ow-mak·er
ˈwi-(ˌ)dō-ˌmā-kər
variants
or widow maker
also widowmaker
: a blockage in a branch of the left coronary artery that commonly causes a fatal heart attack
As the dye fills the coronary arteries surrounding and feeding the heart muscle, they can often be seen with remarkable clarity. So can the small constrictions inside the vessels—"widow-makers," cardiologists call them …—H. Garrett DeYoung, High Technology
H. Garrett DeYoung, High Technology
also
: the branch of the left coronary artery susceptible to fatal blockage
One of my arteries—one known as "the widowmaker"—was almost completely blocked. —Rob Mikulak, The Asheville (North Carolina) Citizen-Times
Rob Mikulak, The Asheville (North Carolina) Citizen-Times Love words? Need even more definitions?
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