died: ✓ dead ✗ died

By | May 23, 2017
died
dead
I think we risk becoming the best informed society that has ever died of ignorance.
Credo che rischiamo di diventare la società più informata che mai sia morta di ignoranza.
– Ruben Blades


✓ My grandmother died last year.
✗ My grandmother *is dead* last year.
Mia nonna è morta l’anno scorso.
Quite simple, really: die is a regular verb (to die > died > died), while dead is an adjective. Some more examples:
✓ She’s sad because her pet rabbit has died.
✗ She’s sad because her pet rabbit *is dead*/*is died*.
E’ triste perché è morto il suo coniglietto.
(Notice that the present perfect form of die is have/has died (with the auxiliary verb have), like all other verbs in the present perfect.)
✓ She died in his arms.
✗ She *is dead* in his arms.
E’ morta tra le sue braccia.
✓ I’m dead on my feet.
Dormo in piedi.
✓ It’s ironic that many artists are more famous dead than alive.
E’ ironico che molti artisti sono più famosi morti che vivi.


Now try the quiz below! There are TEN answers. The pass mark is 90% (9 out of 10). Click on the blue arrows to go to the next or previous question. You can check your answers immediately or when you’ve finished the quiz.

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