现看看常用的表示 “死亡” 的词有：
die v.
pass away
decease v.
demise v.
depart v.
doom n.
perish v.
be carried off
1. die 最客观的表示“死亡” 的词，不带任何感情色彩。指生物失去生命或事物不复存在。例如：
How many people died in the war?
在这次战争中有多少人死亡?
The old man died last week.
那个老人上周去世了。
Hundreds of refugees died of starvation.
数百名难民死于饥饿。
My love will never die.
我的爱始终不渝。
2. pass away “死”的委婉的说法，意为 “去世；逝世；谢世，辞世，仙游，永登极乐，上天堂了，去了西方极乐世界了等等 ”。
柯林斯词典对 pass away 这个短语专门注释道：
“You can say that someone passed away to mean that they died, if you want to avoid using the word 'die' because you think it might upset or offend people.”
“如果你怕说 'die' 会让对方感到难过，或冒犯他人，你可以用' pass away' 这个短语来替代。”
例如：
Her uncle passed away last night.
她叔父昨晚去世了。
He passed away at five o'clock this morning.
他于今晨5时谢世。
The famous author passed away suddenly.
那位著名作家突然去世了。
He unfortunately passed away last year.
他去年不幸逝世。
She passed away in her sleep.她在睡梦中去世。
以上表达饱含缅怀、伤痛、不舍的情感。
His illness will soon pass away. 他的病症会很快消失的 。
3. depart 是死亡的委婉说法，与 pass away 同义。例如：
She departed in peace last night.
昨晚，她安然地与世长辞了。
He departed this world with a sense of having fulfilled his destiny.
他带着一种已完成使命的满足感离开了这个世界。
4. perish /ˈperɪʃ/ [正式或文]是个动词，尤指人或动物的惨死、猝死。死亡；毁灭；丧失；老化，脆裂；湮灭；暴死如：
A family of four perished in the fire.
一家四口死于此次火灾之中。
Thousands perished when the tsunami hit that area.
那一地区发生海啸，数千人罹难。
John had a heart attack in the office and perished on the spot.
约翰在办公室心脏病发作，当场死亡。
Thousands of victims perished, trampled underfoot.
数以千计的受害者遭踩踏致死。
His father, also a top-ranking officer, had perished during the war
他的父亲，也是位高级军官，在战争中牺牲了。
Most of the butterflies perish in the first frosts of autumn.
大多数蝴蝶会在秋天的第一场霜冻来临时纷纷死去。
Early buildings were made of wood and have perished.
早期建筑物为木质结构，已经消失殆尽。
Their tyres are slowly perishing.
他们的车胎在慢慢老化。
Buddhism had to adapt to the new world or perish...
佛教必须适应新时代，否则将会消亡。
Civilizations do eventually decline and perish.
各种文明最后都会衰落、消亡。
5. demise /dɪˈmaɪz/也是 “死亡” 的意思，这个词是一个正式的用法。名词，
死亡；消亡；终止；倒闭；失败；逝世；一命呜呼；例如：
Smoking, rather than genetics, was the cause of his early demise.
导致他英年早逝的原因是吸烟而非遗传。
The demise of the industry has caused untold misery to thousands of hard-working tradesmen
该行业的没落给数以千计辛苦经营的商贩带来了难言的苦楚。
I agree that the demise of London zoo would be terrible
我也认为如果伦敦动物园不复存在的话那真是太糟糕了。
6. doom 这个词表示死亡的时候是个名词，意思是 “死亡；毁灭；厄运；劫数”。例如：
Smoking is a one-way ticket to doom and is probably the most important single preventable cause of heart disease.
吸烟注定会带来恶果，它或许是最主要的而且是唯一一个可以预防的心脏病诱因。
Thousands of residents met their doom in this flood.
数千居民在这场洪水中丧生。
They're just like eggs hurled against stone; they're heading for their doom.
鸡蛋怎能碰得过石头，还不是自寻死路。
7. decease /dɪˈsiːs/指法律意义上的“死亡、亡故”。例如：
Upon his decease all his properties passed to his wife.
由于他的死亡，他所有的财产都过继给了他妻子。
The general's decease left the army without a leader
将军死亡使这支军队群龙无首。
8. carry off 指（疾病等）夺去……的生命，使死亡，常用被动语态。例如：
The famous actor was carried off by a sudden heart attack last night.
这位著名演员昨晚心脏病发作，突然离世。
总之， perish 和 be carried off，属于死得很惨的“惨死”类。
pass away和die都表示“死亡”、“去世”，但是 pass away 比 die 委婉，带有缅怀和不舍的感情色彩。既然如此，那为什么外媒报道霍金、基辛格等去世的新闻，都用 die 而不用 pass away 呢？难道这位伟大的物理学家还不配得到全球媒体的尊重吗？
其实，主要是出于下面两个原因：
第一，pass away带有感情色彩，而新闻不需要感情色彩。
英美报刊的新闻体裁分为消息和特写，消息最注重的是客观报道，讲究直接陈述事实而不是抒发情怀，die 显然比 pass away 更中性客观。
第二，新闻标题要求用词少而准。
是的，die 显然比 pass away 更短小精悍。
一起来看看外媒都是怎么报道霍金去世的新闻的。
Stephen Hawking, renowned scientist, dies at 76.
Stephen Hawking: Visionary physicist dies aged 76
Stephen Hawking, science's brightest star, dies aged 76
Famed Physicist Stephen Hawking Has Died at the Age of 76
所有主流外媒在报道霍金去世的新闻时，标题中都用了 die 这个词。但是，在报道中提及霍金子女的声明、引用他们的原话的时候，则出现了 pass away，饱含缅怀、伤痛、不舍的情感。
“In a statement that confirmed his death at home in Cambridge, Hawking’s children said: 'We are deeply saddened that our beloved father passed away today.'”
In all one's lifetime it is oneself that one spends the most time being with or dealing with.