noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of burial
First recorded in 1200–50; bury + -al 2; replacing Middle English buriel, back formation from Old English byrgels “burial place,” from byrg(an) “to bury” + -els(e), noun suffix ( cf. riddle 1)
Explanation
A burial is the act of placing a dead person in a grave. It's a ritual of respect and closure. If your pet lizard dies, give him a proper burial by digging a little grave in your backyard. If you've ever been to a funeral, you've probably witnessed a burial — lowering a corpse into the ground. Though burying a body is physically like burying anything, a burial involves solemn rituals and deep respect. Often, religious services are given as the body goes under, and the family and friends gather at the burial to mourn the dead. A tombstone or other marker is erected after the burial.
Vocabulary lists containing burial
Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Suffixes: -al, -ial
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"Taste of Salt" by Frances Collins, Chapters 13–18
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Doctor Faustus
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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 hatchet burial has been brewing for a while.
From Slate ● Aug. 24, 2026
Each new burial altered how the available space was organized and understood while still taking earlier burials into account.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 19, 2026
One relates the tale of her gravediggers, who carry the secret of her true burial place.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
Hichilema's government had wanted to bring Lungu home for a state burial, while his family wants him laid to rest in South Africa where he died.
From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026
I didn’t want to have to answer dumb questions about the burial.
From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns
Bodies placed on top of one another were found in two-thirds of the chamber's burials.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 19, 2026
In addition to preventing lawful and decent burials, Bush, 48, previously pleaded guilty to 35 counts of fraud by false representation and another of fraudulently running a business, relating to the sale of funeral plans.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
"They don't believe that safe, dignified burials could really help," says Dr Babou Rukengeza from the charity Save The Children.
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026
In the later period, burials became much more selective and were dominated by a single male lineage, indicating a different social organization.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 8, 2026
Already they had discovered nine burials, one body placed in a big funerary urn, all apparently interred at the same time.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
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.
