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

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

Word Origin and History for graveyard

graveyard

1773, from grave (n.) + yard (n.1). Graveyard shift "late-night work" is c.1907, from earlier nautical term, in reference to the loneliness of after-hours work.