graveyard

[ greyv-yahrd ]

/ ˈgreɪvˌyɑrd /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR graveyard ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a burial ground, often associated with smaller rural churches, as distinct from a larger urban or public cemetery.

Informal. graveyard shift.

a place in which obsolete or derelict objects are kept: an automobile graveyard.

RELATED WORDS

cemetery, necropolis, boneyard

Nearby words

gravesham, graveside, gravesite, gravestone, gravettian, graveyard, graveyard orbit, graveyard shift, graveyard slot, graveyard stew, graveyard watch

Origin of graveyard

First recorded in 1765–75; grave¹ + yard²

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for graveyard

Today, a forlorn air hangs over Santa Maria degli Angeli, like a graveyard where ghosts are buried.
The Venetian Nuns Who Ditched Their Habits for High Fashion|Liza Foreman|September 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
By Alex Orlov for Life by DailyBurn If your fridge is a graveyard of expired foods, listen up.
Can This Device Save You From Food Poisoning?|DailyBurn|May 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
On August 16, 1876, the chapel and its graveyard, Campo Santo, opened.
The Sacrificial Limbs of New Orleans|Nina Strochlic|March 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
From whales to ships to unlucky explorers, the Skeleton Coast has become the graveyard of many.
Namibia’s Spooky Skeleton Coast|Nina Strochlic|March 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST

A man took the bus home from the graveyard shift, bone-tired but dreaming big dreams for his son.
Full Text of President Obama’s 2014 State of the Union Address||January 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Barely discernible, on the sand, a quarter of a mile east of Graveyard Point where the wreck had struck, was a dark body.
The Flying Death|Samuel Hopkins Adams
And, looking down, we can see a peaceful gentleman sitting on a bench in St. Paul's graveyard, reading a book.
Plum Pudding|Christopher Morley
He was much astonished at my story, and said that he was sorry I had not asked him to accompany me, as he knew the graveyard well.
The Somnambulist and the Detective|Allan Pinkerton
We took our dinners with us an' et 'em on the graves in the graveyard back the church.
The Brass Bound Box|Evelyn Raymond
It was a winding road, and about a hundred paces further on, it turned to the right to the graveyard.
Crime and Punishment|Fyodor Dostoevsky

British Dictionary definitions for graveyard

graveyard

/ (ˈɡreɪvˌjɑːd) /

noun

a place for graves; a burial ground, esp a small one or one in a churchyard

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012