noun
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a person who mourns, esp at a funeral
-
(at US revivalist meetings) a person who repents publicly
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of mourner
Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at mourn, -er 1
Explanation
Anyone who is grieving for a person who has died is a mourner. Funerals give mourners the opportunity to remember and say goodbye to a loved one. While a mourner is anyone who mourns someone's death, the word is often used to mean "person attending a funeral." In some cultures, throughout history, professional mourners were people who were hired to publicly display their grief at the funeral of some well-known figure. Today, most mourners are family members and friends — people who knew the person well and grieve their death.
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:
"The whole community is numb," another mourner says.
From BBC ● May 15, 2026
Another mourner cited the product’s affordability, lamenting that Minute Maid’s frozen juice concentrates were “a must” for households that relied on WIC/SNAP benefits.
From Salon ● Feb. 6, 2026
"It could have been my son, quite simply," said one mourner, Mina, welling up with tears.
From Barron's ● Jan. 1, 2026
One mourner called KitKat ‘the best city bodega cat anyone could ever ask for. His lil pet requests meant a lot for some of us.’
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 2, 2025
It was Faith Taylor, as in the Faith Taylor, looking all weepy and gorgeous, the only mourner whose honeyed brown skin hadn’t paled under the harsh lights.
From "Anthem of a Reluctant Prophet" by Joanne Proulx
President Trump, members of Congress, world leaders, cabinet secretaries and television hosts were among the mourners assembled at the National Cathedral in Washington.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
Vice President JD Vance told the mourners Graham was an affable, gregarious politician who would slap Senate colleagues on the back and had a passion for engaging opponents in "swashbuckling" debate.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
Inside, mourners jostled to touch the coffin before prayers were held.
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026
On Monday, Iranian television broadcast large crowds of mourners slowly walking alongside the black truck carrying Khamenei’s flag-draped coffin and those of several slain relatives.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
After a funeral, the mourners all go to the house of the surviving family to eat.
From "Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood" by Trevor Noah
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.
