Cenotaph (Noun)
Meaning
A monument built to honor people whose remains are interred elsewhere or whose remains cannot be recovered.
Classification
Nouns denoting man-made objects.
Examples
- The city council voted to erect a cenotaph in memory of the soldiers who perished in the war, as many of their remains had been lost at sea.
- The ancient cenotaph stood in the town square, a testament to the villagers who had been swept away by the devastating flood.
- After the massive earthquake had left the city in ruins, a cenotaph was built to honor those whose bodies were never found or identified.
- Every year on the anniversary of the disaster, local residents gather at the cenotaph to pay their respects to the victims.
- The cenotaph in the national cemetery honored those military personnel who were listed as missing in action, with an inscription reading 'may they never be forgotten'.