urn

American  

[urn] / ɜrn /

noun

• urns
  plural

1. a large or decorative vase, especially one with an ornamental foot or pedestal.

2. a vase for holding the ashes of the cremated dead.

3. a large metal container with a spigot, used for making or serving tea or coffee in quantity.

4. Botany. the spore-bearing part of the capsule of a moss, between lid and seta.

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urn British  

/ ɜːn /

noun

1. a vaselike receptacle or vessel, esp a large bulbous one with a foot

2. a vase used as a receptacle for the ashes of the dead

3. a large vessel, usually of metal, with a tap, used for making and holding tea, coffee, etc

4. botany the spore-producing capsule of a moss

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• urnlike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• urns
  plural

Etymology

Origin of urn

1325–75; Middle English urne < Latin urna earthen vessel for ashes, water, etc., akin to urceus pitcher, Greek hýrchē jar

Explanation

An urn is a large, hollow vase that's usually made of metal or clay. Some urns are used for making coffee or tea, others are made to put someone’s ashes in. Go figure. Urn is probably from the Latin word urna for "a jar or vessel," but some say it’s from another Latin word urere which means, "to burn.” While some urns are used for making hot drinks, the most common use of an urn is holding the ashes of a dead person. Most urns are decorated. “Ode to a Grecian Urn” by the Romantic poet John Keats (1820), is a poem about the figures on a classical Greek urn.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

urn urns

It’s backed by a mission-style silhouette tiled with an urn overflowing with foliage.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026

Hoyte van Hoytema’s Imax-framed cinematography is assertive and present, rocking with the stormy waves and peering into the torch-lit darkness where the color palette is as starkly orange and black as an ancient Greek urn.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026

There are now only 10 matches before Australia defend the urn in the UK next summer.

From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026

The family lost everything including baby photos, Missi’s grandmother’s art and the stone urn that contained her late father’s ashes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 20, 2026

Inside, the rooms were almost empty—a large, once elegant country house stripped of all but a few mats, an altar in one comer of the first room, a funeral urn.

From "Farewell to Manzanar" by Jeanne Houston

Near a white tent, about a hundred empty urns awaited ashes of the dead after cremation.

From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026

He has added gold trim to the crown molding, smothered the walls with gold-framed artworks and gold-painted embellishments, placed inch-thick gold coasters on the desk, and lined up gold urns on the mantel.

From Slate ● Jun. 11, 2026

The next day is deep-clean Monday, when First Watch dishwashers scrub coffee urns and the greasy grates where bacon sizzles.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 12, 2026

"The urns were deposited at the same time as they were packed tightly within the pit and adhered to the same 15th to 13th Century BC date range."

From BBC ● Dec. 18, 2025

Did she notice the ornamental touches around the entrance, the Roman urns spilling granite fruit, the harlequin marble?

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides

Related Words

• container
• jar
• pot
• vase