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

The project sits unfinished as a monument to folly.

… Stonehenge yet stands: a monument of the earlier time when the Roman name was unknown in Britain …

—Charles Dickens

(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 of monument

• tombstone
• stone
• plaque

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

Situated on the plaza between the Lincoln Memorial and the Reflecting Pool, the pop-up monument is a temporary tribute honoring the names of almost every person who has served in the military since the nation’s inception. — Sophia Solano, Washington Post, 20 Aug. 2026

But the rest of the land, save for the monorail, one of Disneyland’s most recognizable monuments, should be considered fair game. — Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times, 18 Aug. 2026

After the city ceded control of Riis to the federal government, in the nineteen-seventies, the monument to public recreation was shuttered. — Jake Offenhartz, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2026

The public can pay $10 to join a design committee for the monument or purchase expansion packs to help fund it. — Mateo Rosiles, USA Today, 17 Aug. 2026

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