[Idiom] He ate himself sick

[JarekSteliga]

Can I say, 'he ate himself dead'? if I want to say that he died as a result of having eaten too much? If not, what would be a proper way to say this?

 

[MikeNewYork]

I know of no cases in which overeating led directly to death.

 

[Matthew Wai]

I found an example of 'ate himself to death' on https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q="ate+himself+to+death"

Not a teacher.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

Can I say, 'he ate himself dead'? if I want to say that he died as a result of having eaten too much? If not, what would be a proper way to say this?

What a great question!

"Ate himself sick" is a common figure of speech. It means he ate so much he got sick. "Ate himself dead" would be understood as humor, word play on a common expression.

If you're not trying to be funny, say "He ate himself to death." That's the correct figure of speech.

 

[JarekSteliga]

I want to use it in a situation which is not funny and at the same time I want to use it figuratively to comment on a situation in which someone expands their business beyond what they can manage. 'To bite off more than one can chew' somehow does not seem adequate enough to me since it does not convey the idea of ultimate punishment.

 

[emsr2d2]

Did someone expand their business to the point where they died? If not, I see no reason to use anything to do with death in whatever phrase you choose.

 

[Matthew Wai]

Might the OP liken 'death' to 'failure'?

Not a teacher.

 

[MikeNewYork]

Matthew, the obesity and its effects killed him, not the eating. But I get your point.

 

[Tdol]

I want to use it in a situation which is not funny and at the same time I want to use it figuratively to comment on a situation in which someone expands their business beyond what they can manage. 'To bite off more than one can chew' somehow does not seem adequate enough to me since it does not convey the idea of ultimate punishment.

The person overextended himself. Ate himself to death wouldn't work here for me.