FROM THE ARCHIVETuesday, October 20, 2026
cenotaph
SEN-uh-taf/ˈsɛn.əˌtæf//noun
01 / MEANING
A memorial for someone whose body is buried elsewhere, often shaped like an empty tomb.
In a sentence.
- 01
The town raised a cenotaph for soldiers whose graves lay overseas.
- 02
A wreath rested at the cenotaph beside the station.
Where it came from.
Cenotaph came through French from Greek words for ‘empty’ (kenos) and ‘tomb’ (taphos).
Explore the sourceWhy it’s interesting.
Its roots explain the distinction: a cenotaph honors the dead without containing their remains.