Advertisement

Advertisement

View synonyms for tumulus

tumulus

[ too-myuh-luhs, tyoo- ]

noun

, plural tu·mu·lus·es, tu·mu·li [too, -my, uh, -lahy, tyoo, -].
  1. Archaeology. an artificial mound, especially over a grave; barrow.
  2. Geology. a domelike swelling or mound formed in congealed lava.


tumulus

/ ˈtjuːmjʊləs /

noun

  1. archaeol (no longer in technical usage) another word for barrow 2
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of tumulus1

1680–90; < Latin: mound, swelling, equivalent to tum ( ēre ) to swell + -ulus -ule
Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of tumulus1

C17: from Latin: a hillock, from tumēre to swell up
Discover More

Example Sentences

Last summer, archaeologists and a metal detectorist conducted a small survey of the tumulus on behalf of the Norwegian Directorate for Culture Heritage.

The stones, or menhirs — some as tall as six feet — buttressed a massive capstone set in a tumulus, or a mound of earth and pebbles.

The call sounded from far away, and Wart found himself standing by the side of an ancient tumulus, like an enormous mole hill, with a Mack hole in front of him.

Bassett said he was sitting on a pile of boulders when he realized that the rocks were the top layer of a tumulus, an archaeological term for a burial chamber or sepulcher.

It's possible, he said, that when pyramid building came into fashion at Sedeinga it was combined with a local circle-building tradition called tumulus construction, resulting in pyramids with circles within them.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement