Doctor had met death at sea maybe (7)

I believe the answer is:

drowned

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'death at sea maybe' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this defines the answer.

'doctor had met' is the wordplay.
'doctor' becomes 'dr' (abbreviation).
'had' becomes 'owned' ('own' can be a synonym of 'have').
'met' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'dr'+'owned'='DROWNED'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for drowned that I've seen before include "Died by submersion" , "Lost at sea" , "Submerged, flooded" , "Suffocated in water" , "Died underwater" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.

Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.