Which one is right/sounds better: "The shot men drop to the floor." or "The shot men drop on the floor." I am trying to imply they are either dead or heavily injured. I am not a native speaker, but enjoy writing. Thank you!
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drop to the floor would usually imply you have control of your body. "He dropped to the floor and put his head against the door to listen to the conversation inside." A person who is shot falls to the floor; they don't drop really.– LambieCommented Feb 12, 2022 at 17:52
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2 Answers
Since they are already on the floor (unless they are flying when you shoot them) it is better to say "drop to the floor". However, this does sound more like "they duck down to hide" so a better verb like "collapse" or even (figuratively) "crumple" might be better:
The shot man crumpled to the floor and remained motionless, except for a growing puddle of blood.
The men who were shot fell to the floor.
The men were shot and fell to the floor.
The bullets or shots hit the men and they fell to the floor.
Generally, we wouldn't say "the shot man or men" followed by a description of their "going down". To me, "shot men" makes me think of this kind of thing: The shot men were dead and taken to the morgue.
