What is referred to when discussing the death of an organism as a whole?

The death of an organism as a whole is referred to as somatic death. This term encompasses the complete cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. In essence, somatic death is characterized by the failure of the body's systems and processes, leading to the end of life for that organism.

Somatic death can be contrasted with other concepts of death, such as cellular death, which refers specifically to the death of individual cells rather than the organism as a whole. Biological death also entails physiological aspects but might not fully capture the comprehensive state of the entire organism ceasing to function. Clinical death is a term that is often used interchangeably with somatic death but can also refer to the moment when vital signs, like heartbeat and breathing, have stopped while there may still be some residual biological activity.