Could it be "because of" ?
***** NOT A TEACHER *****
(1) Hopefully, a teacher will soon answer.
(2) I do not want to give you a wrong answer, so I shall NOT answer
YES or NO.
(3) I will, however, report what I found on the Web.
(a) About three years ago, a person named CJ at another helpline
gave some advice. CJ has a reputation for understanding grammar
very well. Here are some of his examples:
(i) John's parents were upset because of the car accident.
=
They reacted by feeling sad when they heard the news.
(ii) Karen felt crushed [super disappointed] because of her failure
on the exam.
= She reacted by feeling crushed when she heard the news.
(iii) Henry felt saddened because of the death of his grandfather.
=
He reacted by feeling sad when he heard the news.
*****
Did you notice that CJ used because of the car accident/ her
failure/ the death.
Maybe (I do not know) CJ feels that one does not become
upset because of "news."
So maybe you could use "because of" this way:
"She was upset because of her father's death."
*****
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