monument

noun

mon·​u·​ment ˈmän-yə-mənt 

1

obsolete : a burial vault : sepulchre

2

: a written legal document or record : treatise

3

a(1)

: a lasting evidence, reminder, or example of someone or something notable or great

(2)

: a distinguished person

b

: a memorial stone or a building erected in remembrance of a person or event

4

archaic : an identifying mark : evidence

also : portent, sign

5

obsolete : a carved statue : effigy

6

: a boundary or position marker (such as a stone)

7

: national monument

8

: a written tribute

Synonyms

• gravestone
• headstone
• stone
• tombstone

Examples of monument in a Sentence

They have erected a monument in his honor.

the Quakers disapproved of monuments, regarding them as idolatrous, so thousands of Nantucketers spend their eternal rest in complete anonymity

Recent Examples on the Web

The wedding cake for Elizabeth and Philip made by Mackie’s — one of 12 cakes from different bakers — was a four-tiered, six-foot tower inspired by Edinburgh’s monument to the early 19th-century writer Sir Walter Scott. —Brian Murphy, Washington Post, 14 July 2024

Up to four semifinalists will be selected to develop a design proposal for the monument and receive $5,000 stipends. —Abigail Gruskin, Baltimore Sun, 12 July 2024

After a yearlong battle, the City Council declared a 1962 residence in Brentwood once owned by Marilyn Monroe as a cultural-historic monument. —Dakota Smith, Los Angeles Times, 29 June 2024

Listen to this article The former Los Angeles home of Marilyn Monroe has been named a historic cultural monument, saving it from destruction by its current owners. —Theresa Braine, New York Daily News, 27 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin monumentum, literally, memorial, from monēre to remind — more at mind

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing monument

• national monument

Kids Definition

monument

noun

mon·​u·​ment ˈmän-yə-mənt 

1

: something that serves as a memorial

especially : a building, pillar, stone, or statue honoring a person or event

2

: a work, saying, or deed that lasts or that is worth preserving

the book is a monument of scholarship

3

: a boundary marker (as a stone)

4

: a place of historic interest or natural beauty set aside and maintained by the government as public property