tomb

American  

[toom] / tum /

noun

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

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

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

Example Sentences

Though concentrated, it’s situated among newly refreshed spaces containing lavishly ornamented mummy coffins, carved grave stelae, canopic jars, tomb wall reliefs and the preserved body of a woman named Gautseshenu.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026

He hopes to see the mosque, which houses the tomb of a Sufi sheikh, host a traditional music festival when the renovation is complete, "in five months".

From Barron's • Feb. 1, 2026

But many centuries later, King Tut’s tomb was discovered by the British archaeologist Howard Carter in this astonishing story as recounted by H.V.F.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 9, 2026

There has been a place of worship on the site since at least the 14th Century, and today's Georgian building includes the tomb of an archbishop of Canterbury from the reign of the Stuarts.

From BBC • Dec. 24, 2025

And I remember my sweet cousin who died at war and never returned, Tía Zimbul’s poor son without a tomb.

From "Across So Many Seas" by Ruth Behar

Related Words

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