tumulus

noun

Definition of tumulusnext
as in cemetery

Related Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of tumulus The circular stone ruins stretched about 40 feet across and matched the general design of a Roman burial mound, or tumulus, archaeologists said. — Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 24 Oct. 2025 Interestingly enough, the tumulus represents a meeting of Roman and Celtic traditions, though, by the looks of it, this funerary monument, possibly attached to a stately though unknown elite, was a symbolic gesture, piquing intrigue and revealing a slice of Roman life rarely seen. — Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 19 Oct. 2025 In 1957, archeologists discovered a royal tomb (also known as a tumulus) at the site of Gordion, Phrygia’s ancient capital located about 60 miles southwest of Ankara, Turkey. — Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 12 June 2025 Melena flags a hand limply at her older daughter as Nanny hoists Nessa onto the edge of the cot, where the girl lies, inert and cringing, in the lee of the tumulus that Melena has become. — Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 5 Mar. 2025 Nearby, the researchers found a 197- by 26-foot tumulus, or burial mound, and an extravagant array of Greek funerary goods likely left by merchants and mercenaries living in the area. — Isis Davis-Marks, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 Aug. 2021 Another surprising discovery is a giant tumulus near the town of Amphipolis in northern Greece. — National Geographic, 8 Apr. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tumulus
  1. cemetery
  2. barrow
  3. graveyard
  4. mound
  5. churchyard
Noun
  • Reached by phone for comment, David Pimm, the president of the Bohemian National Cemetery Association, said two of the cemetery’s three retorts, or furnaces, were not working due to an electrical fire.
    — Gregory Royal Pratt, Chicago Tribune, 15 Aug. 2026
  • The narrative begins with a prologue in which a man mows grass in a cemetery dotted with twenty-four unmarked graves.
    — Keziah Weir, Vanity Fair, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of cemetery
Noun
  • Near the town of Sanquhar, a southwestern Scottish community nestled in verdant countryside, researchers stumbled upon a Bronze Age barrow—the first find of its kind in the area.
    — Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 21 Dec. 2025
  • The ancient long barrow, located at the border of the villages Dlouhé Dvory and Lípa in the country’s eastern Bohemia region, measures roughly 620 feet long and 50 feet wide at its largest point.
    — Francesca Aton, ARTnews.com, 2 July 2024
Definition of barrow
Noun
  • With a few wonderful exceptions that proved the rule (The Good Place, New Girl), the network sitcom landscape of the 2010s was a graveyard of glib titles, gimmicky premises, and mercifully short runs.
    — Judy Berman, Time, 11 Aug. 2026
  • The casualties of picking wrong fill the YC fintech graveyard.
    — Boaz Sobrado, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of graveyard
Noun
  • Yet Webb, seemingly unaffected, keeps taking the mound and giving the Giants a chance.
    — Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 16 Aug. 2026
  • Gerrit Cole had kept Toronto scoreless up to that point, but momentum shifted after the Yankees ace double-clutched and threw soft and wide to second on a potential double play ball back to the mound.
    — Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 15 Aug. 2026
Definition of mound
Noun
  • An initial ceremony was held at Kyiv’s Spaskyi Lyceum, where Halyna had served as school principal for more than 20 years, before moving to a churchyard in the suburb of Zazymia, close to the former family home.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 15 Aug. 2026
  • Juliana, a Black girl, was found hanging in a North Charlotte churchyard May 8.
    — Caitlin McGlade, Charlotte Observer, 31 July 2026
Definition of churchyard

Browse Nearby Words

tumultuousness
tumulus
tun
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Tumulus.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tumulus. Accessed 18 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of oxymoron

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

Is “GIF” Pronounced “Jiff” or “Giff”?

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All