memorial

American  

[muh-mawr-ee-uhl, -mohr-] / məˈmɔr i əl, -ˈmoʊr- /

noun

• memorials
  plural

1. something designed to preserve the memory of a person, event, etc., as a monument or a holiday.

2. a written statement of facts presented to a sovereign, a legislative body, etc., as the ground of, or expressed in the form of, a petition or remonstrance.

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adjective

1. preserving the memory of a person or thing; commemorative.

   memorial services.

2. of or relating to the memory.

memorial British  

/ mɪˈmɔːrɪəl /

adjective

1. serving to preserve the memory of the dead or a past event

2. of or involving memory

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noun

1. something serving as a remembrance

2. a written statement of facts submitted to a government, authority, etc, in conjunction with a petition

3. an informal diplomatic paper

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• memorially
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• memorials
  plural

Etymology

Origin of memorial

1350–1400; Middle English < Late Latin memoriāle, noun use of neuter of Latin memoriālis for or containing memoranda. See memory, -al ¹

Explanation

Just as the Lincoln Memorial pays tribute to Abraham Lincoln, a memorial is anything that symbolizes or celebrates someone who died. Every gravestone in a cemetery is actually a small memorial. A memorial is a service or statue dedicated to someone who died. A memorial service celebrates the life of the deceased. Something written about the dead person can also be called a memorial, and you could say donating to a dead friend's favorite cause is a memorial to them. If it honors the dead, the word memorial probably fits.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

memorial memorials

"Thank God that a wave pushed the sinking vessel and we managed to climb on top," Chance Siyamavhu said at a memorial service in the lakeside town of Kariba close to the border with Zambia.

From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026

A public memorial for Widdecombe is due to be held later this year.

From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026

She made the video montage of my mom for her memorial, which was extra difficult because a family member had all sorts of unreasonable demands.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

A memorial busk was held in Dublin on Thursday evening.

From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026

She spent hours in front of this memorial altar, drowning in sadness.

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock

Locals have already set up makeshift memorials at the scene.

From Salon ● Jul. 26, 2026

By 1949, Noguchi had completed an astonishing range of commissions—murals, architecture, parks, playgrounds, memorials, industrial designs and scenography.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026

The argument over their status and memorials to UPA figures has long cast a shadow over diplomatic relations between the allies and neighbours.

From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026

Chávez famously said that he never wanted to have memorials in his name, telling a friend, “Statues are for pigeons to s— on. If you want to remember me, organize.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026

Twenty stone monuments stood in a somber row along the crest of the glacier’s terminal moraine, overlooking the mist-filled valley: memorials to climbers who had died on Everest, most of them Sherpa.

From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer

Related Words

• ceremony
• headstone
• mausoleum
• plaque
• remembrance
• statue
• tombstone