pass away

verb

passed away; passing away; passes away

intransitive verb

1

: to go out of existence

2

: die sense 1

Synonyms

• check out
• conk (out)
• croak [slang]
• decease
• demise
• depart
• die
• drop
• end
• exit
• expire
• fall
• flatline
• go
• kick in [slang]
• kick off [slang]
• part
• pass (on)
• peg out [chiefly British]
• perish
• pop off
• step out
• succumb

Examples of pass away in a Sentence

the old woman passed away quietly

Recent Examples on the Web

Dear Eric: My husband passed away unexpectedly at a young age. —R. Eric Thomas, Chicago Tribune, 1 Mar. 2025

Clips of Hackman's best films Gene Hackman has passed away at the age of 95. —Megan Cartwright, Newsweek, 27 Feb. 2025

The conceptual artist recently passed away on February 12 at age 84. —Karen K. Ho, ARTnews.com, 27 Feb. 2025

For the breakthrough artist, the EP, originally titled No Tears in Heaven, is especially cathartic as it was renamed for Denise, a close friend of Eser’s who passed away. —Lisa Kocay, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for pass away

• aaa
• adonais
• alleyway
• alumnae
• anime
• anyway
• arete
• attache
• baa
• beaujolais
• bouvier
• breakaway

Kids Definition

pass away

verb

: die entry 1 sense 1