Standard Lemma guide

undertaker

noun · 5 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.

  • /ˈʌndə(ɹ)ˌteɪkə(ɹ)/
  • /ˌʌndə(ɹ)ˈteɪkə(ɹ)/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: AH1 N D ER0 T EY2 K ER0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A funeral director; someone whose business is to manage funerals, burials and cremations.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: mortician, cold cook

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

A person receiving land in Ireland during the Elizabethan era, so named because they gave an undertaking to abide by several conditions regarding marriage, to be loyal to the crown, and to use English as their spoken language.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: historical

Examples

  • In 1588, Edmund Spenser became an undertaker in the first Elizabethan plantation, receiving the forfeited Irish estate of Kilcolman Castle.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

A contractor for the royal revenue in England, one of those who undertook to manage the House of Commons for the king in the Addled Parliament of 1614.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: historical

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

One who undertakes or commits to doing something.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: rare

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

one whose business is the management of funerals

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: mortician, funeral undertaker, funeral director

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: skilled worker, trained worker, skilled workman

Narrower terms: embalmer

History

Etymology

From undertake (verb) + -er.

Across languages

Translations

67 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Afrikaans: begrafnisondernemer — funeral director
  • Arabic: حَانُوتِيّ (ḥānūtiyy) — funeral director
  • Bengali: মুর্দা ফরাশ (murda fôraś) — funeral director
  • Bulgarian: погребален агент — funeral director
  • Catalan: director de pompes fúnebres — funeral director
  • Catalan: directora de pompes fúnebres — funeral director
  • Chinese Mandarin: 承辦殯葬者 /承办殡葬者 (chéngbàn bìnzàng zhě) — funeral director
  • Czech: pohřebník — funeral director
  • Czech: funebrák (expr.) — funeral director
  • Danish: bedemand — funeral director
  • Dutch: begrafenisondernemer — funeral director
  • Finnish: hautausurakoitsija — funeral director
  • French: croque-mort — funeral director
  • French: directeur de funérailles — funeral director
  • French: directrice de funérailles — funeral director
  • French: thanatologue — funeral director
  • Galician: director de funeraria — funeral director
  • German: Bestatter — funeral director
  • German: Bestatterin — funeral director
  • German: Leichenbestatter — funeral director
  • German: Leichenbestatterin — funeral director
  • German: Beerdigungsunternehmer — funeral director
  • German: Beerdigungsunternehmerin — funeral director
  • Greek: εργολάβος κηδειών (ergolávos kideión) — funeral director
  • Ancient Greek: ἐνταφιαστής (entaphiastḗs) — funeral director
  • Hungarian: temetkezési vállakozó — funeral director
  • Icelandic: útfararstjóri — funeral director
  • Ido: funeristo — funeral director
  • Ido: sepultisto — funeral director
  • Irish: adhlacóir — funeral director
  • Italian: impresario di pompe funebri — funeral director
  • Japanese: 葬儀屋 (sōgiya) — funeral director
  • Korean: 장의사 (jang'uisa) — funeral director
  • Northern Kurdish: gorrker — funeral director
  • Northern Kurdish: binaxker — funeral director
  • Northern Kurdish: definker — funeral director
  • Latin: vespillō — funeral director
  • Latin: libitīnārius — funeral director
  • Latin: pollīnctor /pollictor — funeral director
  • Macedonian: погребник (pogrebnik) — funeral director
  • Māori: kaiwhakarite uhunga — funeral director
  • Norman: entrépranneux — funeral director
  • Norwegian Bokmål: begravelsesagent — funeral director
  • Old English: byrgend — funeral director
  • Old English: byrgere — funeral director
  • Portuguese: agente funerário — funeral director
  • Portuguese: cangalheiro — funeral director
  • Romanian: antreprenor de pompe funebre — funeral director
  • Romanian: cioclu — funeral director
  • Russian: дире́ктор похоро́нного бюро́ (diréktor poxorónnovo bjuró) — funeral director
  • Russian: гробовщи́к (grobovščík) — funeral director
  • Spanish: director de funeraria — funeral director
  • Swedish: begravningsentreprenör — funeral director
  • Thai: สัปเหร่อ (sàp-bpà-rə̀ə) — funeral director
  • Volapük: funisepülan — funeral director
  • Volapük: funihisepülan — funeral director
  • Volapük: funijisepülan — funeral director
  • Welsh: trefnwr angladdau — funeral director
  • Welsh: ymgymerwr angladdau — funeral director
  • Kings River Yokuts: tonoo'tcim (Kocheyali) — funeral director
  • Palewyami Yokuts: tonocim — funeral director
  • Southern Valley Yokuts: tonochim — funeral director
  • Bulgarian: предприемач (predpriemač) — one who undertakes or commits to doing something
  • French: entrepreneur — one who undertakes or commits to doing something
  • Ancient Greek: ἐγχειρητής (enkheirētḗs) — one who undertakes or commits to doing something
  • Latin: redemptor — one who undertakes or commits to doing something
  • Macedonian: претприемач (pretpriemač) — one who undertakes or commits to doing something
Real reading context

undertaker in complete knowledge articles