memorial
- something designed to preserve the memory of a person, event, etc., as a monument or a holiday.
- a written statement of facts presented to a sovereign, a legislative body, etc., as the ground of, or expressed in the form of, a petition or remonstrance.
Origin of memorial
Related Words
ceremonytombstonestatueremembranceheadstoneplaquemausoleumrememberingobeliskshaftrelictabletinscriptioncolumnpillarkeepsakesouvenirrecordtokenmonolithExamples from the Web for memorial
Contemporary Examples
And if you want proof of what the country is really all about, just walk through the National September 11 Memorial Museum.
Will and Kate will start with a visit to the 9/11 Memorial downtown, and end with a monster fundraiser at the Met.
The memorial service is one thing England still knows how to do far better than any other nation.
Churchill’s Secret Treasures for Sale: A British PM’s Life on the Auction BlockTom Teodorczuk
December 8, 2014
A memorial service will be held in Latina Friday, November 28th, 2014.
Down below, the cops had closed off the two memorial pools that mark the footprints of the towers that once stood there.
Historical Examples
I forced the shirt on him, however, as a sort of memorial of me.
Ned MyersJames Fenimore Cooper
Like Elizabeth, her "memorial" is short, but it does not "perish with her."
Female Scripture Biographies, Vol. IIFrancis Augustus Cox
The memorial of this excellent woman is short, but replete with instruction.
Female Scripture Biographies, Vol. IIFrancis Augustus Cox
Nelson soon assured the Austrian commander that this was not the object of his memorial.
The Life of Horatio Lord NelsonRobert Southey
He was the first American writer who was honored by a memorial in Westminster Abbey.
Graded Poetry: Second YearVarious
memorial
- serving to preserve the memory of the dead or a past event
- of or involving memory
- something serving as a remembrance
- a written statement of facts submitted to a government, authority, etc, in conjunction with a petition
- an informal diplomatic paper
Word Origin
Word Origin and History for memorial
adj.
late 14c., "memorable, excellent; remembered, committed to memory," from Old French memorial "mindful of, remembering," from Latin memorialis (adj.) "of or belonging to memory," from memoria "memory" (see memory).
n.
late 14c., "fame, renown, reputation," also "commemorative gesture, monument, or rite;" in general, "something by which the memory of a person, thing, or event is preserved," from Old French memorial "record, report," and directly from Late Latin memoriale "a memorial," noun use of neuter of Latin memorialis (adj.) "of or belonging to memory," from memoria "memory" (see memory). Meaning "memorial act, commemoration" is from mid-15c.