n.
Pronunciation: ' ka-zh ə l-t ē , ' kazh-w ə l-, ' ka-zh ə -w ə l-
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural -ties
Date: 15th century
1 archaic : CHANCE , FORTUNE <losses that befall them by mere casualty ― Sir Walter Raleigh>
2 : serious or fatal accident : DISASTER
3 a : a military person lost through death, wounds, injury, sickness, internment, or capture or through being missing in action b : a person or thing injured, lost, or destroyed : VICTIM <the ex-senator was a casualty of the last election>