commemorate

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verb com·mem·o·rate \kə-ˈme-mə-ˌrāt\

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

commemorator

play \kə-ˈme-mə-ˌrā-tər\ noun

See commemorate defined for English-language learners

See commemorate defined for kids

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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

Deller’s giant billboards commemorate Beatles manager Epstein, who died three months after the album was released.

— jill lawless, The Seattle Times, "Liverpool fetes ‘Sgt. Pepper’ with help from its friends", 2 June 2017
In this Aug. 28, 2013 file photo, NAACP president and CEO Benjamin Jealous speaks at the Let Freedom Ring ceremony at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

— associated press, Washington Post, "Former NAACP chief Jealous to run for Maryland governor", 31 May 2017
Macron met Putin amid the gold and marble of Versailles and showed him around an exhibition commemorating Russian czar Peter the Great, who visited France in 1717.

— helene fouquet, Bloomberg.com, "Macron Offers Putin Improved Ties, Rebukes Kremlin `Propaganda'", 29 May 2017
Memorial Day became a national holiday after World War I and is now commemorated throughout the country with ceremonies honoring those who died while serving their country.

— leada gore, AL.com, "Memorial Day 2017: What's open, what's closed, banks, post office, stores and more", 29 May 2017
On June 23, 2015, six days into Ramadan, then-ISIS spokesman Abu Muhammad al-Adnani called for attacks to commemorate the holy month.

— amarnath amarasingam, The Atlantic, "ISIS's Perverse, Bloody Interpretation of Ramadan", 26 May 2017
Brimming with history, the park commemorates the early days of San Diego and includes many historic buildings such as a schoolhouse, blacksmith shop, San Diego’s first newspaper office and a stable with a carriage collection.

— carolina gusman, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Top 12 things to do for free in San Diego", 26 May 2017
Keeping on the brighter side of the celebration, several restaurants and bars around Chicago will host food and drink deals throughout the weekend to commemorate the occasion.

— adam lukach, chicagotribune.com, "12 Memorial Day food and drink deals around Chicago", 25 May 2017
To commemorate the milestone, historic Wright sites, museums and hotels are celebrating with special events, new exhibitions and anniversary packages.

— nora walsh, New York Times, "For Frank Lloyd Wright’s 150th, Tours, Exhibitions and Tattoos", 25 May 2017

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

First Known Use: 1599

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

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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)