as in cemetery
a piece of land used for burying the dead
criminals and unidentified people are sometimes buried in a potter's field
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of potter's field
According to a 1951 Milwaukee Journal article, the potter's field was the burial site of many victims of the city's 1849-1850 cholera epidemic, which was estimated to have killed as many as 700 of the city's then-20,000 residents.
—
Claire Reid, Journal Sentinel, 11 Oct. 2024
The island is not only the largest potter's field in the U.S., but it is also believed to be the single largest AIDS burial site, according to the NYC Parks Department.
—Kiara Alfonseca, ABC News, 1 Dec. 2023
The family lived down the street from the potter's field where the boy was first buried, and placed flowers there on holidays.
—Maryclaire Dale, USA TODAY, 14 Jan. 2023
Claire Reid, Journal Sentinel, 11 Oct. 2024
The island is not only the largest potter's field in the U.S., but it is also believed to be the single largest AIDS burial site, according to the NYC Parks Department.
—Kiara Alfonseca, ABC News, 1 Dec. 2023
The family lived down the street from the potter's field where the boy was first buried, and placed flowers there on holidays.
—Maryclaire Dale, USA TODAY, 14 Jan. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for potter's field
Noun
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Even as tourists from around the world wander the cemetery, the Jiménez family treats the holiday as a sacred communion, inviting outsiders only to witness and participate respectfully.—
Rocío Muñoz-Ledo,
CNN Money,
3 Nov. 2025
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Israeli soldiers bulldozed the cemetery down the road with no headstones visible to indicate who is buried where.—
Jane Arraf,
NPR,
3 Nov. 2025
Noun
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For years, Billboard has tracked the graveyard smashes, thriller nights and legal nightmares that have sunk their teeth into the KILLboard Rot 100.—
Joe Lynch,
Billboard,
27 Oct. 2025
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Children play among headstones, and locals see ornate mausoleums daily on their way to run errands; the graveyards woven into public life as parks and libraries are in other cities.—
Ryan Macasero,
Mercury News,
26 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Potter's field.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/potter%27s%20field. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
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