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crematorium

crematorium

15 7.4
A building where people burn dead bodies
  • noun
  • /krɪˈmɔːtəriəm/
translation icon : crematorio
  • This is a crematorium.
  • crematorium operator
  • trip to the crematorium
  • smoke from the crematorium

They are not the only Satanist who may meet close to crematorium facilities.

Examples

  • The General Cemetery Company constructed and runs the West London Crematorium within the grounds of Kensal Green Cemetery.

    Blog text (23)
  • In a large, stark, white-washed walls, dark unvarnished paneling, cold stone floors assembly hall of the '30s style crematorium, the mourners waited in shuffling silence.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • Must get her to the crematorium.

  • The body you took from the crematorium.

  • We were at the crematorium.

  • We stopped at the crematorium.

    Academic text (2007)
  • And the mourners? - We'll be late to the crematorium.

  • The nearby crematorium looked like a factory with a red brick chimney.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • When Bill was young, he thought that everyone had died here, that everyone was burnt here at Golders Green Crematorium, their essence disappearing in the form of charcoal smoke issuing from a red brick tower into a grey sky.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • We gathered at the crematorium to say our final goodbyes.

Synonyms

crematory
vscrematorium
4 7.2

A building where dead bodies are burned

has the same meaning but appears as an alternate form or spelling

Antonyms

122 1.8

A place where people are buried after they die

How Big

crematorium
15 7.4
crematory
4 7.2

Surface Forms

crematorium singular
crematoriums plural
crematoria plural

Morphology

crematorium = cremate (semi-transparent) = cremat + orium

The word is clearly linked to 'cremate', but the learned Latinate suffix '-orium' makes the exact building sense less directly predictable for ordinary learners.

Etymology

The word crematorium comes from the Latin verb cremare, which means 'to burn', plus the ending -orium, which means 'place for', and you can see the same root in cremation. So a crematorium is literally a 'place for burning', which is why it is a building where dead bodies are cremated.