death drive

noun

The drive toward death and self-destruction.

Similar
death instinctThanatos
OriginGerman Todestrieb →
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Meanings

noundeath drive (plural death drives)

plural death drives

  1. human sciencesThe drive toward death and self-destruction.

    The connection between the death drive and the symbolic order is a constant with Lacan, but we can differentiate the various stages of his teaching precisely by reference to the different modes of articulation of the death drive and the signifier: […]

    1989, Slavoj Žižek, Ernesto Laclau, The Sublime Object of Ideology, Verso, →ISBN, page 131

    Synonyms: death instinct, Thanatos

Synonyms & antonyms

nounThe drive toward death and self-destruction.

Similar
death instinctThanatos
Also see
death instinct

Origin

  1. GermanTodestrieb
  2. Englishdeath drive

Calque of German Todestrieb.

More words from German

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Finnish kuolemanvietti
  • kuolemanviettidrive toward death and self-destruction
French pulsion de mort
  • pulsion de mortdrive toward death and self-destruction
German Todestrieb
  • Todestriebdrive toward death and self-destruction
Polish popęd śmierci
  • popęd śmiercidrive toward death and self-destruction
Turkish ölüm dürtüsü
  • ölüm dürtüsüdrive toward death and self-destruction
Cite this entry
APA

death drive. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/death%20drive

MLA

“death drive.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/death%20drive. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “death drive,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/death%20drive.

Source: death drive on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.