corpse
Americannoun
-
corpses
plural
-
a dead body, usually of a human being.
- Synonyms:
- cadaver
-
something no longer useful or viable.
rusting corpses of old cars.
-
Obsolete. a human or animal body, whether alive or dead.
noun
verb
Synonym Usage
See body.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of corpse
First recorded in 1225–75; Middle English corps; originally spelling variant of cors ( see corse) but the p is now sounded
Explanation
Another name for a dead body is corpse. You might hear the word on TV crime shows, but a corpse doesn't have to be a crime victim, just any lifeless body. The words corpse and "corps" are often confused, and with good reason — both came from the Latin word corpus, meaning "body," and up until the 19th Century, both referred to a dead person. Around that time, the word with the "e" at the end was established as the word for a person's remains, while the other spelling was relegated to a "body" of people working together or in a military division, and very much alive!
Vocabulary lists containing corpse
Body Language: Corp ("Body")
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The Westing Game
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Beowulf vocabulary
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The last time multiple corpse flowers bloomed on the same day at the Huntington was in 2018.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
A rare corpse flower, known for its massive size and foul stench, will bloom for just 24 to 48 hours.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
Hailing from the rainforests of Sumatra, Indonesia, corpse flowers are a massive, putrid spectacle.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
“It feels really prehistoric to look at this plant, because it is so giant,” Shi said of the corpse flower, which can grow over 12 feet tall.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
A barnacle-covered creature as pale as a corpse, and the dark, oily tentacle of a second creature gripping on to the first.
From "Challenger Deep" by Neal Shusterman
Authorities have been forced to store corpses at a temporary holding centre -- the air-conditioned offices of the district commerce association.
From Barron's ● Aug. 30, 2026
Sometimes known as "Doctor Death", he became famous for developing a technique called plastination, by which fluids and fatty tissue in corpses are replaced by rubber and polymers.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
Families in eastern Congo traditionally wash and bury their dead themselves, but the corpses of Ebola victims are highly infectious.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026
"Loved ones are throwing themselves at the bodies, touching the corpses... while organising mourning rituals bringing together loads of people", Jean Marie Ezadri, a civil society leader in Ituri, told AFP last week.
From Barron's ● May 25, 2026
Mrs. Rezaei sat slumped on the couch, looking like she had just strode inside from a battlefield, leaving behind a trail of corpses in true Klingon fashion.
From "Darius the Great Is Not Okay" by Adib Khorram
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
