Showing results for "remains"

• present tense form of remain (3rd person singular).

remains

British  

/ rɪˈmeɪnz /

plural noun

1. any pieces, scraps, fragments, etc, that are left unused or still extant, as after use, consumption, the passage of time, etc

   the remains of a meal

   archaeological remains

2. the body of a dead person; corpse

3. Also called: literary remains.  the unpublished writings of an author at the time of his or her death

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Explanation

The word remains can mean a dead body, so a detective might investigate to find out if some bones found in a lake are human or non-human remains. You can also use remains to mean the part of something that's left behind after the rest has been used or thrown away. So the remains of your birthday cake might just be some crumbs and melted candles, and the remains of a building after an earthquake could consist of a crumbling foundation. In a murder mystery, though, remains are likely to be human bodies.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

remains

More than 40 hours after a deadly ferry fire began, Philippine rescuers have boarded the charred remains of the MV June Aster in search of dozens of missing people.

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026

Osborn chatted with Pemberton, who said he remains undecided how he will vote in November.

From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026

Magic Mountain’s X2 remains shut down while state safety officials continue an investigation involving the attraction.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026

Belgium, where most of the money lies in a clearinghouse, remains vehemently opposed to tapping Russian assets because of the legal and financial risks Belgian officials argue it would expose them to.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026

It remains unclear how many people will suffer long-term effects from radiation exposure as a result of the Fukushima meltdowns.

From "Meltdown" by Deirdre Langeland

Related Words

• debris
• remnant