dirge

[ durj ]
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noun
  1. a funeral song or tune, or one expressing mourning in commemoration of the dead.

  2. any composition resembling such a song or tune in character, as a poem of lament for the dead or solemn, mournful music: Tennyson's dirge for the Duke of Wellington.

  1. a mournful sound resembling a dirge: The autumn wind sang the dirge of summer.

  2. Ecclesiastical. the office of the dead, or the funeral service as sung.

Origin of dirge

1
1175–1225; Middle English dir(i)ge<Latin: direct, syncopated variant of dīrige (imperative of dīrigere), first word of the antiphon sung in the Latin office of the dead (Psalm V, 8)

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How to use dirge in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for dirge

dirge

/ (dɜːdʒ) /


noun
  1. a chant of lamentation for the dead

  2. the funeral service in its solemn or sung forms

  1. any mourning song or melody

Origin of dirge

1
C13: changed from Latin dīrigē direct (imperative), opening word of the Latin antiphon used in the office of the dead

Derived forms of dirge

  • dirgeful, adjective

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