Meanings
plural Death in the Afternoons
- An alcoholic cocktail made with absinthe, champagne, and sometimes a twist of lemon.
I made three drinks—the first one was a “Death in the Afternoon”—a straightforward drink with absinthe and champagne, but one that gave me the chance to explain the science behind effervescence.
2013 February 24, Kevin Liu, Craft Cocktails at Home: Offbeat Techniques, Contemporary Crowd-Pleasers, and Classics Hacked with Science, Kevin Liu, →ISBN, page 703 more examples
“I'll do a Death in the Afternoon.” “Are you going to commit to the drink?” She pulled a cigarette from her purse and lit it. “Yes, repeated four times.” Bryan smiled, “Okay.” “You seem surprised.” “No, just impressed.”
(Can we date this quote?), Jesse Luke, The Abyss Gazes Back, Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 82Demon attendants scuttled about, carrying trays filled with delectable treats and lots and lots of alcohol. Supes loved their libations. One of the servers swooped into the study and offered me a Death in the Afternoon.
2015 March 20, Mimi Sebastian, The Necromancer's Redemption, ImaJinn Books, →ISBN“Then I have just the drink for you—two Death in the Afternoons coming up.” As he walked away, I swung around to study the dance floor. There was an intriguing mix of both young and old in the room, and the atmosphere in the place was[…]
2019 December 25, Keri Arthur, The Lizzie Grace Boxed Set: Books 1-3, KA Publishing PTY LTD, →ISBN
Origin
Invented by Ernest Hemingway (the recipe was first published in 1935) and given the same name as his 1932 book Death in the Afternoon.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
Death in the Afternoon. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Death%20in%20the%20Afternoon
“Death in the Afternoon.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Death%20in%20the%20Afternoon. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Death in the Afternoon,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Death%20in%20the%20Afternoon.
Source: Death in the Afternoon on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.