cemetery

American  

[sem-i-ter-ee] / ˈsɛm ɪˌtɛr i /

noun

plural

cemeteries

1. an area set apart for or containing graves, tombs, or funeral urns, especially one that is not a churchyard; burial ground; graveyard.

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cemetery British  

/ ˈsɛmɪtrɪ /

noun

1. a place where the dead are buried, esp one not attached to a church

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Etymology

Origin of cemetery

1375–1425; late Middle English < Late Latin coemētērium < Greek koimētḗrion a sleeping place, equivalent to koimē- (variant stem of koimân to put to sleep) + -tērion suffix of locality

Compare meaning

How does cemetery compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• cemetery vs. graveyard

Example Sentences

Many found a city with barely functioning services, their homes destroyed and neighbourhoods pockmarked by makeshift cemeteries authorities are now exhuming.

From Barron's

The actress was later buried at a hillside cemetery overlooking the Mediterranean.

From BBC

Her funeral will take place on Wednesday in Saint-Tropez, southern France, where she lived for decades, in a cemetery overlooking her home and the Mediterranean.

From BBC

“Flag Sojourn 250” — was raised over Mississippi, having already covered 40,000 miles of its ongoing international tour of cemeteries, landmarks, governor’s mansions and courthouses.

From Salon

During a 1987 trip back to Poland, he found that the cemetery where his grandparents were buried had been obliterated by a highway.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• garden
• graveyard
• mortuary
• tomb