tomb

[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.
verb (used with object)
5.
to place in or as if in a tomb; entomb; bury.
Origin
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
Related forms
tombal, adjective
tombless, adjective
tomblike, adjective
untombed, adjective
Examples from the web for tomb
  • His tomb became a place of great devotion, and famed for miracles.
  • The tomb contained a wooden coffin decorated with a copper lattice and a gilded mask, sitting on a raised platform.
  • And it could finally allow for demolition of the old concrete tomb and reactor.
  • The risk of a big concrete tomb is that it would have to be there for decades, even a century.
  • He designed his own tomb and it has never been discovered.
  • His unearthed tomb reflects both his cruelty and his brilliance.
  • The wasp then lays her eggs in the complacent roach and seals it in its tomb.
  • Over the years his bones have darkened to the rich caramels of their earthen tomb.
  • The transformation of archaeology, from tomb-robbing by amateurs into a coherent scientific discipline, was complete.
  • Donate to the charities but this amount is only enough to buy a ticket to the old tomb.
British Dictionary definitions for tomb

tomb

/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.
the tomb, a poetic term for death
4.
anything serving as a burial place: the sea was his tomb
verb
5.
(transitive) (rare) to place in a tomb; entomb
Derived Forms
tomblike, adjective
Word Origin
C13: from Old French tombe, from Late Latin tumba burial mound, from Greek tumbos; related to Latin tumēre to swell, Middle Irish tomm hill
Word Origin and History for tomb
n.

late 13c., from Anglo-French tumbe, Old French tombe (12c.), from Late Latin tumba (cf. Italian tomba, French tombe, Spanish tumba), from Greek tymbos "burial mound, grave, tomb," from PIE root *teu- "to swell" (see thigh). The final -b began to be silent 14c. (cf. lamb, dumb). The Tombs, slang for "New York City prison" is recorded from 1840.