ossuary
pronunciation
How to pronounce ossuary in British English:
UK ['ɒsjʊərɪ]
How to pronounce ossuary in American English:
US ['ɒsjʊˌerɪ]
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- Noun:
- any receptacle for the burial of human bones
Word Origin
- ossuary (n.)
- "urn for the bones of the dead," 1650s, from Late Latin ossuarium "charnel house," from neuter of Latin ossuarius "of bones," from Latin os (plural ossua) "bone" (see osseous) on model of mortuarium.
Example
- 1. An inscription had been found on an ancient bone box ( ossuary ) that reads " james , son of joseph , brother of jesus . "
- 2. Moreover , naming the brother as well as the father on an ossuary was " very unusual , " lemaire says .
- 3. By all ancient accounts , the tomb of jesus was empty , making it highly unlikely that it was moved to another tomb , decayed for one year 's time , and then the bones put in an ossuary .