obituary

noun

obit·​u·​ary ə-ˈbi-chə-ˌwer-ē  ō- 

-ˈbi-chə-rē

plural obituaries

: a notice of a person's death usually with a short biographical account

obituarist

ə-ˈbi-chə-ˌwər-ist, 

ō- 

-ˈbi-chə-rist

noun

obituary adjective

Synonyms of obituary

• obit
• epitaph
• inscription
• memorial

Examples of obituary in a Sentence

I read her obituary in the newspaper.

several obituaries for Herman Melville portrayed him as an obscure, largely forgotten author

Recent Examples on the Web

Visitors can see the sole visage, a curio card of Strother, found by Denham on eBay, sitting alongside his obituary in the town newspaper, encased in glass. — Darcel Rockett, Chicago Tribune, 3 Nov. 2026

The site has death certificates as well as short newspaper obituaries and notes written at the time of death. — Laura Bauer, Kansas City Star, 28 Oct. 2026

Jerusalem — In a political career that has spanned more than three decades, Benjamin Netanyahu has been written off too many times to count, only to prove the obituaries were penned prematurely. — Tal Shalev, CNN Money, 28 Oct. 2026

There was a full-page obituary in Der Angriff, written by the Gauleiter himself, that was full of Christian as well as Nazi symbolism. — Literary Hub, 27 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin obituārium, noun derivative of Medieval Latin obituārius "of death, recording records or dates of death," from Latin obitu-, stem of obitus "death" + -ārius -ary entry 2 — more at obit

First Known Use

1703, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

obituary

noun

obit·​u·​ary ə-ˈbich-ə-ˌwer-ē 

plural obituaries

: a notice of a person's death (as in a newspaper)

obituary adjective