When inquiring about "Patriots' Day how many died," it is essential to differentiate between the historical commemorative holiday and a specific tragic event that occurred on this day. Patriots' Day is an annual civic holiday observed in Massachusetts and Maine, commemorating the Battles of Lexington and Concord in April 1775, which marked the beginning of the American Revolutionary War. However, the question regarding deaths most commonly references the terrorist attack that took place during the Boston Marathon on Patriots' Day, April 15, 2013.
The Boston Marathon Bombing resulted in the immediate fatalities of three civilians: Krystle Campbell, Lu Lingzi, and Martin Richard, who were spectators near the finish line. Additionally, Sean Collier, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology police officer, was ambushed and killed by the bombers days later during the extensive manhunt. Furthermore, Boston Police Department Officer Dennis Simmonds died in 2014 from a brain aneurysm that medical authorities determined was directly related to head trauma sustained during a shootout with the bombing suspects. While the historical Battles of Lexington and Concord involved significant combatant casualties for both American militiamen and British soldiersestimated to be around 125 American dead and wounded and approximately 273 British casualtiesthe query regarding a direct death count often pertains to the more recent civilian and law enforcement fatalities from the 2013 attack.
Therefore, focusing on the modern tragedy associated with the day, a total of five individuals died as a direct consequence of the Boston Marathon Bombing and its immediate aftermath. The term "died" in the phrase "patriots day how many died" serves as a verb, specifically the past tense form of "to die," indicating the action of ceasing to live.