Epitaph

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈɛp.ɪˌtɑːf/

Definitions

1. A memorial inscription on a gravestone conveys respect and remembrance for someone who has passed away while summing up their life and contributions
2. A brief text engraved on a tombstone to honor and remember the departed
3. Words written on a gravestone serving as a tribute to a person's life and legacy

Etymology: The Greek word "epitaphios" originally meant "relating to a funeral," and it was built from "epi," meaning "over," and "taphos," meaning "tomb." Its earliest sense was something like a funeral oration or a lament, not an inscription. The Late Latin "epitaphium" carried that sense of a eulogy, and Old French "epitafe" passed it along into the language. Over time the meaning shifted from the spoken or written tribute itself to the words carved on the stone above the grave. The eulogy moved from the funeral speech to the monument, so the word came to name the inscription rather than the praise it contained. That literal, physical sense is what English speakers mean today.

Synonyms: inscription, marker, memorial