Standard Lemma guide

sepulchre

noun · verb · 4 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈsɛpəlkə/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • General-American: /ˈsɛpəlkɚ/
  • obsolete: /ˈsiːpəlkəɹ/

1

noun

Meaning 1

A burial chamber.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • Near-synonym: crypt

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: tomb, vault, crypt

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

A recess in some early churches in which the reserved sacrament, etc. was kept from Good Friday till Easter.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: historical

Topics: Christianity

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

verb

Meaning 3

To place in a sepulchre.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: inter

4

noun

Meaning 4

a chamber that is used as a grave

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: burial chamber, sepulcher, sepulture

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: chamber, grave, tomb

Narrower terms: crypt, mausoleum, repository, monument, vault, burial vault, Holy Sepulcher, Holy Sepulchre

History

Etymology

From Middle English sepulchre, sepulcre, sepulker, from late Old English sepulcer, Old French sepulchre, sepulcre, and their etymon Latin sepulchrum, sepulcrum (“grave, burial place”).

Across languages

Translations

39 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: قَبْر (qabr) — burial chamber
  • Bulgarian: гробница (grobnica) — burial chamber
  • Catalan: sepulcre — burial chamber
  • Chinese Mandarin: 塚 /冢 (zhǒng) — burial chamber
  • Maore Comorian: kaɓuri — burial chamber
  • Czech: hrobka — burial chamber
  • Dutch: graf — burial chamber
  • Egyptian: q:r-s-Q6 (qrs) — burial chamber
  • Esperanto: sepultejo — burial chamber
  • Finnish: hautakammio — burial chamber
  • French: sépulcre — burial chamber
  • German: Grabkammer — burial chamber
  • German: Gruft — burial chamber
  • Greek: τάφος (táfos) — burial chamber
  • Greek: μνήμα (mníma) — burial chamber
  • Italian: sepolcro — burial chamber
  • Macedonian: гро́бница (gróbnica) — burial chamber
  • Malay: makam — burial chamber
  • Mongolian: бунхан (bunxan) — burial chamber
  • Occitan: sepulcre — burial chamber
  • Old English: moldern — burial chamber
  • Polish: grobowiec — burial chamber
  • Portuguese: sepulcro — burial chamber
  • Romanian: sepulcru — burial chamber
  • Romanian: mormânt — burial chamber
  • Russian: склеп (sklep) — burial chamber
  • Russian: гробни́ца (grobníca) — burial chamber
  • Serbo-Croatian: grobnica — burial chamber
  • Serbo-Croatian: kripta — burial chamber
  • Serbo-Croatian: mauzolej — burial chamber
  • Spanish: sepulcro — burial chamber
  • Swahili: kaburi — burial chamber
  • Swedish: grift — burial chamber
  • Turkish: kabir — burial chamber
  • Turkish: türbe — burial chamber
  • Ottoman Turkish: قبر (kabr, kabir) — burial chamber
  • Ukrainian: гробниця (hrobnycja) — burial chamber
  • Welsh: beddrod — burial chamber
  • Woiwurrung: mirreng — burial chamber