a subterranean chamber or vault, especially one beneath the main floor of a church, used as a burial place, a location for secret meetings, etc.
Anatomy. a slender pit or recess; a small glandular cavity.
a cellar, vault, or underground chamber, esp beneath a church, where it is often used as a chapel, burial place, etc
anatomy any pitlike recess or depression
What does crypt- mean? Crypto- is a combining form used like a prefix meaning “hidden, secret.” It is used in many scientific, medical, and other technical terms. Crypto- comes from the Greek kryptós, meaning “hidden.” The word crypt also derives from this root. Dig up the connection at our entry for the word. In anatomy, crypto- specifically refers to a crypt in its specialized sense of a “slender pit or recess” or a “small glandular cavity.”Crypt- is a variant of crypto-, which loses its -o- when combined with words or word elements beginning with vowels. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use crypto- article.
1375–1425 for sense “grotto”; 1555–65 for current senses; late Middle English cripte < Latin crypta < Greek kryptḗ hidden place, noun use of feminine of kryptós hidden, verbid of krýptein to hide; replacing earlier crypta < Latin, as above
A crypt is a vault for burying the dead and is often underneath or part of a church building. Crypt rhymes with "gripped," and if you saw a corpse come out of a crypt, you would definitely be gripped with terror. While a coffin is a rectangular box used for burying dead people underground, a crypt is often an elaborate stone or marble vault that's above ground. Some cultures believe in investing in large, decorated crypts to honor the dead, while others choose simpler chambers very close together for keeping family members near, even in death. A crypt can inspire scary thoughts of lids popping and doors opening for the walking dead, but that's due mostly to the widespread crypt scenes in horror movies. Mostly.
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Kudos to Lisa Leslie for her statue outside the Crypt, but there is one glaring omission of those honored.
From Los Angeles Times • May 16, 2026
The display at The Crypt Gallery in Seaford is entitled Back Story and showcases the 50-year-old's determination to stand for long enough to create landscape oil paintings, which he says aided his recovery.
From BBC • Apr. 18, 2025
The Crypt is one of 10 venues that have both NBA and NHL tenants, but it’s the only one with three teams.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 25, 2024
After entering the building, prosecutors say he made his way to the Crypt, where he and others moved a portable lectern to block a door from closing.
From Washington Times • Sep. 8, 2023
He calls it a Crypt; for it was overlaid, and surrounded up to a high level by heaps of rubbish.
From Mellifont Abbey, Co. Louth Its Ruins and Associations, a Guide and Popular History by Anonymous
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.
