morgue

noun

ˈmȯrg 

1

: a place where the bodies of dead persons are kept temporarily pending identification or release for burial or autopsy

2

: a collection of reference works and files of reference material in a newspaper or news periodical office

Examples of morgue in a Sentence

old news stories found in a newspaper morgue

Recent Examples on the Web

Abbas said at least 100 bodies were decomposing in the hospital complex -- with about 50 inside the hospital and dozens more in morgues that have run out of power. —Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 14 Nov. 2023

The following day, his body lay in the morgue of Jenin’s hospital, a green Hamas headband now covering a head wound. —Susannah George, Washington Post, 13 Nov. 2023

On Monday, more than 100 bodies were decomposing in the hospital’s front yard, another 50 were inside and about 60 others were in the morgue, said a spokesman for the Gazan Health Ministry, ​​Medhat Abbas. —Thomas Fuller, New York Times, 13 Nov. 2023

His body remained in a morgue for months before being discharged and buried in a potter's field. —Kiara Alfonseca, ABC News, 30 Oct. 2023

The nightmare of ending up as an anonymous body piled up in a morgue or chucked into the dirt has increasingly haunted Palestinians in Gaza. —TIME, 28 Oct. 2023

Palestinians mourn relatives Tuesday at a morgue in Deir al Balah, Gaza. —Dan De Luce, NBC News, 2 Nov. 2023

Some of their bodies are almost certainly at the Abu Kabir morgue, or at one of the two other morgues just outside Tel Aviv run by the military and police. —Kevin Sieff, Washington Post, 31 Oct. 2023

The buildings featured are wedged between civilian infrastructure, including an MRI compound, a morgue and pathology center, and a chest and dialysis department. —Dov Lieber, WSJ, 28 Oct. 2023

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Word History

Etymology

French

First Known Use

1795, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

morgue

noun

ˈmȯ(ə)rg 

1

: a place where the bodies of the dead are kept temporarily until they are identified or released for burial

2

: a department of a newspaper where reference material is filed

Medical Definition

morgue

noun

ˈmȯ(ə)rg 

: a place where the bodies of dead persons are kept temporarily pending identification or release for burial or autopsy

Legal Definition

morgue

noun

ˈmȯrg 

: a place where the bodies of persons found dead are kept until identified and claimed by relatives or released for burial or autopsy