11 Harry Potter Universe Fates Worse Than Death
3. Dementor's Kiss
At 13 years old, Harry Potter and his school friends were introduced to the guardians of Azkaban: the Dementors and no one can blame the Boy Who Lived for fainting at the sight of the terrifying hooded figures - I'm pretty sure I'd have had an accident at 13 if I came into close contact with one!
Post fainting, Professor Dumbledore dutifully explains to the student populous that the Dementors will be lurking around in case escaped prisoner: Sirius Black comes to Hogwarts for... some reason. Given that Albus has worked at Hogwarts consistently since the 1920's, he probably could have been a bit more honest about what he knew regarding Sirius but that's a story for another time.
The focus here is the Dementor's secret weapon: The Dementor's Kiss. In brief, the Dementors have the ability to literally suck the soul out of their victim and leave them in what's known as a 'Persistent Vegetative State' - basically, the lights are on but no one's at home.
Despite becoming completely vegetative post kiss, the victim lives on and, within Azkaban, is sustained so they do not die of malnutrition, dehydration or any other maladies - it's not quite death, more being forced to live without any way to 'live'.