funeral director
Americannoun
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a person, usually a licensed embalmer, who supervises or conducts the preparation of the dead for burial and directs or arranges funerals.
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a person who owns or operates a funeral home.
noun
Etymology
Origin of funeral director
An Americanism dating back to 1885–90
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.
Anyone can set up as a funeral director without formal training, registration or mandatory oversight.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
She said without regulation of the industry, "in five or 10 years' time there will be another funeral director with another 300 families in a courtroom somewhere".
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
Undertakers in England and Wales can operate without a licence, with anybody free to set themselves up as a funeral director.
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
Continuing on the funeral director's hearing, the Daily Express writes "families hear distressing evidence as rogue funeral director faces sentencing".
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
He does not tell me he will call an ambulance or a funeral director, but instead asks me what I want for breakfast.
From "The Misfits" by James Howe
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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.