from the dead

English

Etymology

A translation of Ancient Greek ἐκ τῶν νεκρῶν (ek tôn nekrôn) or ἀπὸ τῶν νεκρῶν (apò tôn nekrôn, “from among those who are dead”), a phrase in the New Testament, used for instance in the King James Version. See rise from the dead.

Prepositional phrase

from the dead

1. from being dead, from death
   • 1987 June 27, Oral Roberts Tells Conference He Has Raised People From the Dead, New York Times
   • 2005 October 7, Back from the Dead, This American Life
   • 2016 July 28, “How Scientists Are Bringing People Back From The Dead”, in Popular Science:
   • 2017 July 24, “Can you bring a language back from the dead?”, in Irish Times:
2. (figuratively) from obsolescence or failure
   • 2017 November 11, Investment Group Plans to Bring World Airways Back From the Dead, Skift
   • 2017 November 26, “'Coco' helps bring the box office back from the dead”, in Los Angeles Times:
3. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see from,‎ dead.

Usage notes

Common collocations: rise from the dead, raise from the dead, bring back from the dead, come back from the dead.