embalm
Americanverb (used with object)
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to treat (a dead body) so as to preserve it, as with chemicals, drugs, or balsams.
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to preserve from oblivion; keep in memory.
his deeds embalmed in the hearts of his disciples.
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to cause to remain unchanged; prevent the development of.
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to impart a balmy fragrance to.
verb
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to treat (a dead body) with preservatives, as by injecting formaldehyde into the blood vessels, to retard putrefaction
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to preserve or cherish the memory of
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poetic to give a sweet fragrance to
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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embalmsimple
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embalmssimple
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have embalmedperfect
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has embalmedperfect
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am embalmingprogressive
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are embalmingprogressive
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is embalmingprogressive
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have been embalmingperfect progressive
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has been embalmingperfect progressive
Past
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embalmedsimple
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had embalmedperfect
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was embalmingprogressive
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were embalmingprogressive
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had been embalmingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of embalm
1300–50; Middle English embalmen, embaumen < Old French emba ( u ) smer, equivalent to em- em- 1 + -ba ( u ) smer, verbal derivative of ba ( u ) sme balm
Explanation
To embalm is to prepare a body for a funeral or burial. Part of a funeral director's job is to embalm the bodies of people who have died. Various traditions of death and burial require a dead body to be preserved with chemicals, and when someone does this, she's said to embalm the body. Occasionally, there are also medical research or educational reasons to embalm a body. Embalm has an Old French root, embaumer, "preserve a corpse with spices."
Vocabulary lists containing embalm
Ancient Egypt - Introductory
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The Things They Carried
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Ancient Egypt - Middle School and High School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It can also be dangerous to embalm traditions, Burke believed, noting that “a state without the means of some change is without the means of its conservation.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026
Another part of you frantically tries to embalm the memories, fearing the natural deterioration and gnawing terror of time.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 25, 2025
Funeral directors are unable to embalm or treat the deceased in their care until a death is registered.
From BBC ● Feb. 1, 2025
Before the 90-day waiting period is over, mortuaries are not allowed to embalm or cremate people without authorization from their next of kin, so the cooler is the only way to keep remains preserved.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 12, 2024
Mr. Carriaga addressed him sternly: “Did you embalm Josh Billings?”
From "Cannery Row" by John Steinbeck
But currently in the mortuary, Ms Walton embalms about three to four bodies a day.
From BBC ● Nov. 8, 2023
Zahn, owner of the Tillman Funeral Home & Crematory, embalms and buries people for a living.
From BusinessWeek ● Oct. 24, 2013
Among them is Paccione Funeral Directors in Staten Island, which embalms up to 140 bodies a month.
From New York Times ● Jul. 20, 2011
The average funeral home embalms about 150 bodies a year, suggesting that many embalmers are not exposed to formaldehyde throughout the day.
From New York Times ● Jul. 20, 2011
The nominalization rule takes a perfectly spry verb and embalms it into a lifeless noun by adding a suffix like -ance, -ment, -ation, or -ing.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
His father’s embalmed body, dressed in military uniform, lay atop a catafalque in the country’s largest Orthodox cathedral, shrouded in incense.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
A local undertaker said the embalmed remains of the Iranian sailors were being sent back in sealed boxes.
From Barron's ● Mar. 13, 2026
It also meant his body could not be embalmed, as the family had wanted.
From BBC ● Dec. 1, 2024
To take an example from last year, “Talk to Me,” a horror film about an embalmed hand that lets people commune with the dead, became a box office hit, grossing $92 million worldwide.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 19, 2024
We went into the gym, along a marble hallway, and to my surprise we went on past the Trophy Room, where his name was already inscribed on one cup, one banner, and one embalmed football.
From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles
Instead, it reflects a complex blend of substances used during embalming, along with preserved fabrics and materials wrapped around the body.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 16, 2026
As a result of the alleged substandard embalming, family members say they were forced to witness the “grotesque and undignified condition of their loved one’s remains” and suffered humiliation, grief and horror.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 16, 2026
They grouped the compounds into four main categories connected to specific embalming ingredients.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 16, 2026
Funeral homes charge for embalming, caskets, vaults and funeral services.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 3, 2026
And in the basement is a sink and instruments for embalming and for injecting.
From "Cannery Row" by John Steinbeck
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.
