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catacomb

 - 3 dictionary results

cat⋅a⋅comb

  [kat-uh-kohm]
Use catacomb in a Sentence
–noun
1. Usually, catacombs. an underground cemetery, esp. one consisting of tunnels and rooms with recesses dug out for coffins and tombs.
2. the Catacombs, the subterranean burial chambers of the early Christians in and near Rome, Italy.
3. an underground passageway, esp. one full of twists and turns.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME catacombe, OE catacumbe < LL catacumbās (acc. pl.); of disputed orig.; perh. < Gk *katakýmbās, equiv. to kata- cata- + kýmbās, acc. pl. of kýmbē hollow, cup

Related forms:
cat⋅a⋅cum⋅bal  [kat-uh-kuhm-buhl] , adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To catacomb
cat·a·comb   (kāt'ə-kōm')   
n.  

  1. An underground cemetery consisting of chambers or tunnels with recesses for graves. Often used in the plural.

  2. An underground, often labyrinthine passageway.


[Probably French catacombe, from Old French, from Late Latin catacumba.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

catacomb 
O.E. catacumbas, from L.L. (400 C.E.) catacumbae, originally the region of underground tombs between the 2nd and 3rd milestones of the Appian Way (where the bodies of apostles Paul and Peter were said to have been laid), origin obscure, perhaps once a proper name, or dissimilation from L. cata tumbas "at the graves," from cata- "among" + tumbas, acc. pl. of tumba "tomb." Extended 1836 to any subterranean receptacle of the dead (as in Paris).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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