mortuary
/ˈmɔɹt͡ʃəˌwɛɹi/adjective, noun
mortuary is spelled M-O-R-T-U-A-R-Y: 8 letters and 4 syllables. It appears 1.1 times per million words in written English, the 27,462nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, mortuary means “Of or relating to death or a funeral; funereal” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in mortuary?
| Letters | 8: M-O-R-T-U-A-R-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.1 times per million words; the 27,462nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is mortuary?
Mortuary appears 1.1 times per million words in written English, the 27,462nd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce mortuary?
- US /ˈmɔɹt͡ʃəˌwɛɹi/
- UK /ˈmɔːt͡ʃʊəɹi/
- UK /ˈmɔːt͡ʃwəɹi/
Mortuary has 4 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vininn126-mortuary.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of mortuary
- mortuaries plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does mortuary mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Of or relating to death or a funeral; funereal.
noun
- 1
A place where dead bodies are stored prior to burial or cremation; broadly, synonym of funeral home.
- 2
A sort of ecclesiastical heriot, a customary gift claimed by, and due to, the minister of a parish on the death of a parishioner.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Where does mortuary come from?
From Middle English mortuary, from Anglo-Norman mortuarie (“gift to a parish priest from a deceased parishioner”), from Medieval Latin mortuārium (“receptacle for the dead; mortuary”), neuter form of mortuārius (“of or pertaining to the dead”), from Latin mortuus, perfect passive participle of morior (“to die”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).