natural causes
Noun
Meaning
natural causes pl (plural only)
(usually of death or dying) Causes such as illness or disease, as opposed to direct external forces.
Some military casualties are by natural causes and accidents.
The medical examiner determined that he had died of natural causes.
Examples
Miracles are propitious accidents, the natural causes of which are too complicated to be readily understood.
Although I insist that God has always had the power to intervene directly in nature to create new forms, I am willing to be per-suaded that He chose not to do so and instead employed secondary natural causes like random mutation and natural selection.
My favourite ever headline was "Worksop Man Dies Of Natural Causes."
[on John McCain being too old] When you die at 72, no matter what you die of, it's natural causes. Even if you get hit by a truck, it's natural causes. 'Cause if you was younger, you'd have got out the way!
One had been dismissed - and subsequently executed - for a foiled assassination attempt on a higher ranking student, a second had been killed in the practice arena, and the third died in his bunk of natural causes - for a dagger in the heart quite naturally ends one's life.
Among all the studies of natural causes and reasons, light most delights the contemplators.