in extremis

English

Etymology

From Latin in extremis.

Prepositional phrase

in extremis

1. At the point of death.
   • 2018 December 13, Edmund Richardson, Classics in Extremis: The Edges of Classical Reception, Bloomsbury Publishing, →ISBN, page 116:

     Military records describing the deaths of men as a result of injuries sustained during combat employed the phrase in a (now near-obsolete) sense to describe a man on the verge of dying: […] 'He was in extremis when seen and died about 2 hours after the action ceased at 9 pm'.

2. In desperate circumstances.
   • 2011, Michael Lavalette, Vasilios Ioakimidis, Social Work in Extremis: Lessons for Social Work Internationally, Policy Press, →ISBN, page 1:

     This book sets out to look at what we have termed 'social work in extremis'. It is an attempt to bring together a number of case studies that look at social work responses in 'extreme' or crisis situations.

   • 2016 February 9, Christopher Holshek, Travels with Harley: Journeys in Search of Personal and National Identity, Inkshares, →ISBN:

     There was a reason we would call up the Reserves only in extremis.

Translations

at the point of death

• Finnish: henkitoreissa (fi), henkihieverissä (fi)
• Maori: whakahemohemo
• Polish: in extremis (pl)
• Portuguese: in extremis

in desperate circumstances

• Finnish: hätätapauksessa
• Polish: in extremis (pl)
• Portuguese: in extremis

See also

• dire straits

Anagrams

• intermixes

Italian

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from Latin in extrēmīs (literally “in extremes”).

Adverb

in extremis

1. in extremis
   • 2020 September 27, Federico Rampini, “Stati Uniti, affondi, invettive, colpi da ko: così Trump e Biden preparano il duello tv che vale l'elezione [United States, attacks, invective, knockout blows: this is how Trump and Biden are preparing the TV duel that is worth the election]”, in la Repubblica‎^[1]:

     È comunque il presidente in carica che deve fare una rimonta in extremis.

     However, it is the president in office who must make a comeback in extremis.

2. at the last moment