pass away

Idioms  

1. Also,. Die, as in He passed away last week, or After Grandma passes on we'll sell the land, or I hear he's about to pass over. All these terms are euphemisms for dying, although the verb pass alone as well as pass away have been used in the sense of “pass out of existence, die” since the 1300s. The two variants—adding on [c. 1800] and over [c. 1900]—allude to moving to some other-worldly realm.

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Example Sentences

When his children pass away, he continues, maybe they’ll be buried on the moon, or on Mars.

From Slate • May 8, 2026

Presidents typically raise as much money as possible in the year after leaving the White House because it becomes more challenging as time passes, they become less relevant and major donors pass away.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

“If I were to pass away tomorrow, it would be premature,” he said at the time, “but it wouldn’t be unheard of. And so, no, I don’t fear that.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026

"Mummy had been sick for a long time but nobody expected her to pass away and it all happened really quick," she said.

From BBC • Feb. 26, 2026

Within a few thousand years the last, lonesome diprotodon would pass away, and with her the entire species.

From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari

Related Words

• die
• expire
• perish
• succumb