commemorate

verb com·mem·o·rate \ kə-ˈme-mə-ˌrāt \

|Updated on: 15 Aug 2018

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Examples: commemorate in a Sentence

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of commemorate

commemorated; commemorating

transitive verb

1 : to call to remembrance

St. Andrew is commemorated on November 30.

2 : to mark by some ceremony or observation : observe

commemorate an anniversary

3 : to serve as a memorial of

a plaque that commemorates the battle

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commemorator

play \kə-ˈme-mə-ˌrā-tər\ noun

See commemorate defined for English-language learners

See commemorate defined for kids

commemorate was our Word of the Day on 06/12/2012. Hear the podcast!

Examples of commemorate in a Sentence

The festival commemorates the town's founding.
The plaque commemorates the battle that took place here 200 years ago.
Each year on this date we commemorate our ancestors with a special ceremony.

Recent Examples of commemorate from the Web

May 15 is Nakba Day, the Day of Catastrophe, when Palestinians commemorate their ouster.

— oren dorell, USA TODAY, "The U.S. embassy in Israel isn't the only reason for violence: Here are the key issues," 14 May 2018
Palestinians on that date commemorate their mass uprooting during the 1948 war over Israel’s creation.

— ilan ben zion, BostonGlobe.com, "International Court says Israel, Hamas acts on border may be war crimes," 8 Apr. 2018
Easter arrives at the end of Holy Week and right after Good Friday, which commemorates Jesus' crucifixion and death.

— refinery29.com, "This Is The Reason Why People Celebrate Easter," 27 Mar. 2018
Pratt is an accomplished painter and sculptor and previously designed a memorial in Denver that commemorates the 1864 Sand Creek Massacre in Colorado.

— author: hannah natanson, Anchorage Daily News, "Design chosen for first national monument to Native American veterans," 27 June 2018
The picnic was for Juneteenth, which commemorates the emancipation of slaves in Texas on June 19, 1865 — two months after the Confederate army surrendered, ending the Civil War, and three years after the Emancipation Proclamation.

— otis r. taylor jr., SFChronicle.com, "Oakland city politics: Running against Desley Brooks? You may run a risk," 22 June 2018
June 19, the day Roberts found his vandalized truck, is also known as Juneteenth, a holiday that commemorates the end of slavery in the United States.

— bryce airgood, Detroit Free Press, "Michigan activist's truck vandalized with N-word, 'WITE PRIDE'," 19 June 2018
Also removed was the Liberty Place Monument, which commemorated a Reconstruction Era white supremacist attack on the city’s integrated police force.

— christopher carbone, Fox News, "Which Confederate statues were removed? A running list," 19 June 2018
African American guests were admitted only to celebrate Juneteenth (June 19), the holiday that commemorates emancipation from slavery in Texas on that date in 1865.

— paula allen, San Antonio Express-News, "Reader seeks home for special admission ticket to long-gone favorite Playland," 9 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'commemorate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

When you remember something, you are mindful of it. It's appropriate, therefore, that "commemorate" and other related memory-associated words (including "memorable," "memorial," "remember," and "memory" itself) come from the Latin root memor, meaning "mindful." Some distant older relatives are Old English "gemimor" ("well-known"), Greek mermēra ("care"), and Sanskrit "smarati" ("he remembers"). English speakers have been marking the memory of important events with "commemorate" since the late 16th century.

Origin and Etymology of commemorate

Latin commemoratus, past participle of commemorare, from com- + memorare to remind of, from memor mindful — more at memory

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1599

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

commemorate Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of commemorate

keep, observe, celebrate, commemorate mean to notice or honor a day, occasion, or deed. keep stresses the idea of not neglecting or violating.

- kept the Sabbath by refraining from work

observe suggests marking the occasion by ceremonious performance.

- not all holidays are observed nationally

celebrate suggests acknowledging an occasion by festivity.

- traditionally celebrates Thanksgiving with a huge dinner

commemorate suggests that an occasion is marked by observances that remind one of the origin and significance of the event.

- commemorate Memorial Day with the laying of wreaths

COMMEMORATE Defined for English Language Learners

commemorate

verb

Definition of commemorate for English Language Learners

: to exist or be done in order to remind people of (an important event or person from the past)
: to do something special in order to remember and honor (an important event or person from the past)