lachrymatory

American  

[lak-ruh-muh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] / ˈlæk rə məˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i /

Or lacrimatory

adjective

1. of, relating to, or causing the shedding of tears.

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noun

lachrymatories plural

1. Also called lachrymal.  a small, narrow-necked vase found in ancient Roman tombs, formerly thought to have been used to catch and keep the tears of bereaved friends.

lachrymatory British  

/ ˈlækrɪmətərɪ, -trɪ /

noun

1. a small vessel found in ancient tombs, formerly thought to hold the tears of mourners

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adjective

1. a variant spelling of lacrimatory

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• lachrymatories
  plural

Etymology

Origin of lachrymatory

1650–60; (noun) < Medieval Latin lachrymātōrium, equivalent to lachrymā ( re ) to shed tears + -tōrium -tory ²; (adj.) < Medieval Latin lachrymātōrius, equivalent to lachrymā ( re ) + -tōrius -tory ¹; see lachrymal

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lachrymatory lachrymatories

Onions make us teary because a reaction in the onion releases a chemical called lachrymatory factor, or LF, that irritates our eyes.

From New York Times ● Sep. 5, 2017

"What he was proposing to use in Mesopotamia was lachrymatory gas, which is essentially tear gas, not mustard gas."

From BBC ● Jan. 21, 2015

"Bring a lachrymatory, I want to fill it with my tears."

From Told by the Death's Head A Romantic Tale by J?kai, M?r

With an unobserved hint to the affected lady, he pushed an empty dish towards her as a lachrymatory, in order that nothing might be lost.

From Titan: A Romance v. 1 (of 2) by Richter, Jean Paul Friedrich

Shall we not enshrine these sparkling drops in a lachrymatory and, having sealed the sacred fluid with the city seal, shall we not set it in a prominent part of our civick museum?

From The Passionate Elopement by MacKenzie, Compton

At one point, Christle discovers that the Victorians did not actually collect their tears in glass vials, called lachrymatories; nonetheless, the image gives her a metaphor for her process.

From The New Yorker ● Jan. 8, 2020

The peasants, in digging, have likewise found many urns, lachrymatories, and sepulchral stones, with epitaphs, which are now dispersed among different convents and private houses.

From Travels through France and Italy by Smollett, T. (Tobias)

Farce bottleth up her crocodile tears, or labelleth her empty lachrymatories.

From The Works of Charles and Mary Lamb — Volume 6 Letters 1821-1842 by Lamb, Mary

Lachrymatories.—In many ancient places of sepulture we find long narrow phials which are called lachrymatories, and are supposed to have been receptacles for tears: can you inform me on what authority this supposition rests?

From Notes and Queries, Number 51, October 19, 1850 by Various

Lachrymatories.—There is absolutely no authority in any ancient author for this name, and the best scholars speak of these vessels as the bottles usually called lachrymatories, &c.

From Notes and Queries, Number 57, November 30, 1850 by Various