deceased
Americanadjective
noun
adjective
Synonym Usage
See dead.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of deceased
Explanation
When someone is deceased, they are dead — not dying or even just about to die. They are dead. The word deceased has been around since the 15th century, however, when people talk of someone's having died, they rarely use deceased in conversation. For example, if you ask someone how their dog is and their dog is recently deceased, they'll most likely use a less technical phrase such as "no longer with us," or "passed away." The word deceased is more formal, and most often used in the documentation of death or in legal situations, as in "we are here to read the will of the deceased."
Vocabulary lists containing deceased
Salt to the Sea
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"Superman and Me" and "A Smart Cookie/It's Our Story, Too"
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The War I Finally Won
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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.
A body is even infectious after a person dies, making burial rituals that involve touching a deceased person, a common practice in this region, especially risky.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 22, 2026
The estates of some 34,000 deceased people were affected, with the bereavement claims totalling £367m.
From BBC • May 19, 2026
The belief became known locally as the "coffin phenomenon" - the idea that anyone who touched the coffin of a deceased person would also die.
From BBC • May 19, 2026
The news release didn’t state the condition of the injured people and said it was withholding the identities of the deceased individuals, pending notification of their families.
From Los Angeles Times • May 10, 2026
It was an ancient custom at funerals to hire poor people to take upon themselves the sins of the deceased.
From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy
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.
