Sentence:  A year ago it was bruited that the primary character in Erich Maria Remarque 's new novel was based on the Marquis Alfonso de Portago , the Spanish nobleman who <WSD>died</WSD> driving in the Mille Miglia automobile race of 1957 . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  pass from physical life and lose all bodily attributes and functions necessary to sustain life