noun, noun or participle which takes 'suru', intransitive verb
Formal or technical term for drowning death, often used in news reports, police statements, and official records. Compare with 溺死 (できし), which is more common in everyday language.
See also: 溺死
警察はその男性の死因を水死と断定した。
The police determined the man's cause of death to be drowning.
水死者の数は今年に入って増加している。
The number of drowning deaths has been increasing this year.