When I want to say someone passed away because of a certain reason (cancer, accidents etc), which one would sound more natural between "pass away from" and "pass away of"?
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2You can use use from. However, He passed away from an accident is far from idiomatic. Passed away from is only appropriate if the cause is a disease: He passed away from halitosis. If the cause is an accident, you would have to write He passed away as the result of an accident, or similar.– P. E. Dant Reinstate MonicaJun 17, 2017 at 19:47
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Indeed, and even with diseases one often says "passed away as a/the result of". P.S. This is the sort of question where, since both options are not correct, an Ngram is a very helpful tool!– Luke SawczakJun 17, 2017 at 19:55
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2 Answers
In the case of cancer it is not so clear cut
He died of cancer.
He died from cancer.
are both used.
However in an accident, it is usual to hear
He died from injuries sustained in an accident.
He died in an accident.
However,
He died of an accident
is incorrect.
Also, you would say
He died from (too much) drink. (correct)
but not
He died from drinking. (not correct, but understandable)
He died of drink. (not correct, but understandable)
One can use "of" or "from" in the phrase you are using, depending on the circumstance involved, but more often one hears people employing a phrase as follows:
Someone passed away due to cancer, an accident or some other reason.
adjective
6: required or expected in the prescribed, normal, or logical course of events
