| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| funeral |
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| SYLLABICATION: | fu·ner·al |
| PRONUNCIATION: |  fy  n r-l |
| NOUN: | 1a. A ceremony or group of ceremonies held in connection with the burial or cremation of a dead person. b. Archaic The eulogy delivered or the sermon preached at such a ceremony. 2. The burial procession accompanying a body to the grave. 3. An end or a cessation of existence. 4. Slang A source of concern or care: If he doesn't meet the deadline, it's his funeral. | | ADJECTIVE: | Of, relating to, or resembling a funeral. | | ETYMOLOGY: | Middle English funerelles, funeral rites, from Old French funerailles, from Medieval Latin f ner lia, neuter pl. of fnerlis, funereal, from Late Latin, from Latin fnus, fner-, death rites. See dheu- in Appendix I.
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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