debt of nature

noun

Death, seen as an obligation that all living creatures must eventually pay.

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Meanings

noun
  1. euphemisticDeath, seen as an obligation that all living creatures must eventually pay.

    Ten years after he had seen his son married^([sic]), become a church member, and give up his carnal delights, old Deacon Smith paid the debt of nature. His last days he always called his best days.

    1850, T. S. Arthur, “Deacon Smith and his Violin”, in Sketches of Life and Character, Philadelphia: J. W. Bradley, →OCLC, page 76
Cite this entry
APA

debt of nature. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/debt%20of%20nature

MLA

“debt of nature.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/debt%20of%20nature. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “debt of nature,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/debt%20of%20nature.

Source: debt of nature on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.