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Glite Dictionary
to entomb

to entomb

11 8.1
To put a dead body in a tomb or enclose something as if buried
  • verb
  • /ɪnˈtuːm/
translation icon : sepultar
  • In the millions of intervening years, the resin turned into amber, and the ants entombed in the amber became fossils.

In fact, a whole bunch of Shrikes multiplied and and eventually dies and is, you know, entombed in the time Tombs.

Examples

  • Many soldiers lie entombed in the war cemetery, honored for their sacrifice.

  • So, the world's most northerly lake was entombed beneath a near-permanent layer of ice some 2,400 years ago.

    Blog text (19)

  • The snow and ice would eventually settle over him, entombing him.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • There, she remains entombed beneath the mountains.

    Tomb Raider (2018)

  • The dead remain still and safely entombed within the frozen ground.

    Blog text (32)

  • I wish to be entombed alongside Antony.

  • World War Il for us began at Pearl Harbor, and 1177 men still lie entombed in the battleship Arizona.

    Pearl Harbor (2001)

  • When the trees died and disappeared, the ants and mealybugs remained entombed in chunks of resin that were buried at the site.

    Academic text (2006)

  • A few things stayed entombed and lasted immensely longer: fossilized tools or teeth, roadbeds or graves.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • The archaeologists discovered a royal family entombed in the ancient burial site.

Synonyms

to bury
vsto entomb
∞ 1.7

To put something in the ground and cover it with soil, for example a body or treasure

suggests sealing inside a chamber rather than only covering with soil
to lay to rest
vsto entomb
21 4.0

To bury someone after a funeral

is the specific act of sealing inside a chamber rather than a polite phrase
to inter
vsto entomb
  • Formal
4 8.7

To put a dead body in a grave

often focuses on in-ground placement rather than sealing inside a vault
to coffin
vsto entomb
1 6.5

To put a dead body into a wooden box for burial or cremation

focuses on sealing inside a vault instead of placement in a simple container
to crypt
vsto entomb
  • Archaic
1 9.9

To put a dead body in an underground stone room

covers enclosing bodies in any burial vault rather than just stone rooms
to casket
vsto entomb
  • US
1 8.6

To put a dead body into a coffin for burial or cremation

focuses on sealing inside a vault rather than only using a box
to sepulcher
vsto entomb
  • Literature
9.9

To put a dead body in a tomb during a ceremony

is used more broadly not only for ceremonial burials
to tomb
vsto entomb
  • Archaic
9.3

To put a dead person into a grave

often implies enclosing in a sealed chamber rather than general burial
to inhume
vsto entomb
  • Specialized
9.9

To put a dead body in a grave or tomb

is more everyday and stresses sealing within a built vault
to enwomb
vsto entomb
  • Archaic
9.9

Enclose something completely to protect or bury it

uses burial chamber imagery rather than a protective, life image

Antonyms

to exhume
  • Specialized
34 8.1

To dig up a body from the ground for checking or burying again

How Enclosed

to entomb
11 8.1
to bury
∞ 1.7
to cover
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

entomb infinitive
entombed past
entombed past participle
entombing present participle
entombs third person singular

Morphology

entomb = tomb (transparent) = en + tomb

The verb is a straightforward prefixation of 'tomb' with en-, meaning 'put into a tomb', which is directly predictable from the base.

Etymology

The word entomb comes from en- meaning 'in' and tomb meaning 'burial place'. So to entomb someone is to put them 'in a tomb', and by extension to close or enclose something as if it were buried.