burial

noun

buri·​al ˈber-ē-əl 

ˈbe-rē-,

 also  ˈbər-ē-

often attributive

1

: grave, tomb

2

: the act or process of burying

Synonyms

• funeral
• interment
• entombment
• burying

Examples of burial in a Sentence

They prepared the body for burial.

She wanted to give him a proper burial.

Did you attend the burial?

The law prohibits the burial of toxic substances without special permits.

Recent Examples on the Web

Some wear kittles, white burial shrouds, to signify repentance, according to History. —Krys'tal Griffin, Freep.com, 2 Oct. 2025

Finds Connecting Britain to the World Royal burials like that at Sutton Hoo, Suffolk, and Prittlewell, Essex, contained objects from far afield, including Byzantine silver bowls and a jug from the eastern Mediterranean. —Duncan Sayer, JSTOR Daily, 2 Oct. 2025

Grave robbing, premature burial, murder, terror and grief are some of the topics explored through the study of poetry, short stories and novels. —Molly Ryder Granatino, The Conversation, 1 Oct. 2025

Applications for headstones, markers, and burial benefits processing will continue. —David Lightman, Sacbee.com, 29 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English beriel, berial, back-formation from beriels (taken as a plural), from Old English byrgels; akin to Old Saxon burgisli tomb, Old English byrgan to bury — more at bury

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing burial

• burial ground
• burial plot

Rhymes for burial

• aerial
• areal
• ariel
• actuarial
• adversarial
• secretarial
• urticarial
• antimalarial
• biserial
• filarial
• malarial
• subaerial

Kids Definition

burial

noun

buri·​al ˈber-ē-əl 

: the act of burying