tomb

American  

[toom] / tum /

noun

• tombs
  plural

1. an excavation in earth or rock for the burial of a corpse; grave.

2. a mausoleum, burial chamber, or the like.

3. a monument for housing or commemorating a dead person.

4. any sepulchral structure.

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verb (used with object)

1. to place in or as if in a tomb; entomb; bury.

tomb British  

/ tuːm /

noun

1. a place, esp a vault beneath the ground, for the burial of a corpse

2. a stone or other monument to the dead

3. a poetic term for death

4. anything serving as a burial place

   the sea was his tomb

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verb

1. rare (tr) to place in a tomb; entomb

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• tombal
  adjective
• tombless
  adjective
• tomblike
  adjective
• untombed
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• tombs
  plural

Etymology

Origin of tomb

1225–75; Middle English tumbe < Anglo-French; Old French tombe < Late Latin tumba < Greek týmbos burial mound; akin to Latin tumēre to swell. See tumor, tumulus

Explanation

A tomb is a place where a dead person is buried. Usually, a tomb is under a tombstone, which says the name of the person who died and when they lived. We're all going to die, and that means we're all going to end up in some type of tomb: a place where a corpse is buried. Over time, there have been many types of tombs, including the huge, ornate, elaborate tombs of the Egyptians. Other tombs are simpler, involving the simple burial of a box or the cremated remains.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

tomb tombs

The rescuers guided Gil out of his would-be tomb, onto a gurney and outside into the crush of onlookers waiting below the tropical sun, already blazing before 10 a.m.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 5, 2026

Since then, his stunningly well-preserved remains have been kept at the same temperature -- minus six degrees Celsius -- as his icy tomb.

From Barron's ● Jun. 3, 2026

The state media broadcast featured the 42-year-old dictator paying homage to the deceased, scattering dirt over one tomb and laying a white rose on another.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026

During the earlier phase, people buried in the tomb were often members of the same extended families, suggesting close-knit groups spanning multiple generations.

From Science Daily ● Apr. 22, 2026

I was looking for the tomb of a famous writer—Marcel Proust, I think, or maybe George Sand.

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt

The apparent absence of weaponry or tombs, including for the civilization’s rulers, also remains a mystery.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 8, 2026

Mama Margaretha and her atas and their children live together in several traditional houses, which look like tall witches' hats, ranged around her family's tombs.

From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026

We visited on a sunny day, and the wind blew hard as we traced Mina and Lucy’s steps through the tombs and along the path past the Abbey toward Robin Hood’s Bay.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 14, 2026

It culminates above the ancient tombs and temples of Luxor, Egypt, where trips are selling swiftly.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 27, 2026

The new tombs gave a festive air to the pathetic little graveyard, and they planted rows of birches so there would be shade for those who came to visit their dead.

From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende

Related Words

• burial
• coffin
• mausoleum
• monument
• pit
• vault