[Ads-l] to croak

[Ben Zimmer]

Couldn't "croaked" simply be intransitive here?

On Thu, Jul 23, 2026 at 9:14 AM Jonathan Lighter <
00001aad181a2549-dmarc-request at listserv.uga.edu> wrote:

> 'To kill.'
>
> OED/HDAS have this in English criminal lingo from 1819, and U.S.
> likewise from 1847 but this is an interesting general ex. ex. from the
> American West:
>
> 1876 _St. Louis Weekly Globe-Democrat_ (Aug. 25) 2 [Newspapers.com] :
> HOW HE KILLED JOE TUTT...SAM STRAWHAN SHOT DEAD...BILL MULVEY'S TURN
> TO DIE...TWO SOLDIERS CROAKED.
>
>

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