Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[yoshi-pooh]

Hi, everyone!

1. Harry Potter said, " I thought my parents were killed in a car crash."
2. Harry Potter said, " I thought my parents died in a car crash."

I seems to me that both #1 and #2 are fine, but I've heard some English teachers say "be killed" is much more likely to be used when people die in accidents, wars and other similar incidents. If so, is#1 better than #2 for ESL learners to use?

Thank you.

yoshi-pooh

[CP]

You should learn both. And spelling: crash.

When someone dies, you can say that he / she died or was killed, among many other expressions.

When we say that someone dies, it is more a plain statement of fact, without implying much about the cause. When we say that someone was killed, it implies more that there was some agent that caused the death.

Of course, death is always caused by something -- natural causes, old age, suffocation, blunt force trauma, gunshot, all kinds of things. But saying that someone was killed puts a little more emphasis on the cause than just saying that someone died.

So, yes, when the death is sudden and unexpected, from a car crash or an armed robbery or an explosion, you'll more likely hear "He was killed" than just "He died."
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You live a new life for every new language you speak. -Czech proverb

[yoshi-pooh]

Hi, CP

Thank you for your reply.