noun
fatal situation; in the midst of death
Almost exclusively used in the idiom 死中に活を求める (to seek life in the midst of death; to find a way out of a desperate situation). Rarely appears outside this fixed expression.
彼らは死中に活を求めて、危険な作戦を決行した。
They carried out the dangerous operation, seeking a way out of a desperate situation.
「死中に活を求める」という言葉は、絶体絶命の状況で使われる。
The phrase 死中に活を求める is used in a hopeless situation.