# The Grammar of Dying **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 10, 2021, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380 "2021-08-10T12:57:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![StraightTalk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/straighttalk/32/9982_2.png) [@StraightTalk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StraightTalk)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2021, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380/1 "2021-08-10T12:57:46Z")
Do you die “from” something or do you die “of” something? John Doe died from Covid. or John Doe died of Covid. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2021, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380/2 "2021-08-10T13:02:15Z")
To me, “from” sounds slightly better for a specified disease (like COVID), or incident or action. I tend to use “of” for more general conditions, like old age. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2021, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380/3 "2021-08-10T13:35:27Z")
I agree, though I don’t think it’s at all uncommon for people to say things like “died of Covid.” ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2021, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380/4 "2021-08-10T13:40:38Z")
This may well vary geographically, but to me (Ohio, US) “died from Covid” sounds completely foreign, and I would always use “of”. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2021, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380/5 "2021-08-10T13:46:21Z")
Died of fright, of Covid, of some nasty disease. Died from embarrassment, died from serious head wounds. I have no idea if there is some rule about it, just what seems correct. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2021, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380/6 "2021-08-10T13:52:06Z")
Absolutely interchangeable for me in those sentences. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2021, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380/7 "2021-08-10T14:04:00Z")
> [@StraightTalk](#): > > Do you die “from” something or do you die “of” something? > > John Doe died from Covid. > > or > > John Doe died of Covid. A google search on “died from” turned up 31.5M results. A google search on “died of” turned up 49.3M results. The English-language nitpickers on Stack Exchange had a nice inconclusive discussion about it: > Bottom line, there seems to be no hard-and-fast rule, and both ways are considered grammatically valid. The Onion went with “of”: > **[Area Man Dead Of Fries](https://www.theonion.com/area-man-dead-of-fries-1819565221)** > > MURFREESBORO, TN—Longtime fries sufferer Chuck Milner died Monday, succumbing to the fat- and cholesterol-laden side dish after a brave 53-year battle. "Sadly, Milner's family has a history of terminal French-fried potatoes, with his father, sister... ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2021, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380/8 "2021-08-10T14:15:11Z")
Nit: This is not about grammar but about usage. Either one is correct grammar. Common usage may vary depending on region, so one version may sound odd to some ears and fine to others. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2021, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380/9 "2021-08-10T15:00:31Z")
The distinction as it seems to me is that people say you “died of” something that was an ongoing process, while “died from” is more broad. Like I would never say someone “died of” headshot wounds, as the wounds are not a process. Illnesses usually get “died from” in my experience. And, while COVID-19 is technically the virus, not the disease, people use it more for the latter, so it makes sense that I see “died from COVID” more often. I had originally thought my own preferences were the same, but, the more I think about it, the more I realize that “died of” always sounds awkward to my ear. It’s just less awkward sounding when it’s about a process. ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2021, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380/10 "2021-08-10T15:07:08Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Like I would never say someone “died of” headshot wounds, as the wounds are not a process. Whereas I would never say anything else. I agree with **Chronos** that this may be regional, but personally I always say “died of,” no matter what the cause of death. “Died from” sounds weird to my ear. I’m in Indiana, so fairly close to Chronos’s Ohio. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2021, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380/11 "2021-08-10T15:13:31Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > And, while COVID-19 is technically the virus, not the disease, people use it more for the latter, so it makes sense that I see “died from COVID” more often. “COVID” stands for “COrona VIrus Disease”. The proper name for the virus itself (which almost nobody ever actually uses) is SARS-CoV-2. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2021, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380/12 "2021-08-10T15:30:26Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > > [@BigT](#): > > > > And, while COVID-19 is technically the virus, not the disease, people use it more for the latter, so it makes sense that I see “died from COVID” more often. > > “COVID” stands for “COrona VIrus Disease”. The proper name for the virus itself (which almost nobody ever actually uses) is SARS-CoV-2.   Yes. Thanks for clarifying for those who might not have known what I meant. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2021, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380/13 "2021-08-10T16:10:32Z")
Here, I would say “died of” almost all the time. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2021, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380/14 "2021-08-10T17:02:36Z")
Not sure, but this may be one of those American English versus British English things. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2021, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380/15 "2021-08-14T05:12:21Z")
Just for added confusion, how would the equivalent expressions be worded in French or Spanish? Consider the place you came from or where you grew up: In English we say “I am _from_ Los Angeles”, but in French or Spanish we would use the word “_de_” (of) in that context. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2021, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-grammar-of-dying/948380/16 "2021-08-16T04:19:31Z")
What if the cause of death were an overdose of red food coloring? Would you say he died of dyeing or died from dyeing? Or even dyed of dying?