charnel

[ chahr-nl ]
See synonyms for charnel on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a repository for dead bodies.

adjective
  1. of, like, or fit for a charnel; deathlike; sepulchral.

Origin of charnel

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Middle French, from Late Latin carnāle, noun and adjective use of neuter of carnāliscarnal

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use charnel in a sentence

  • The lazar houses and the charnels have been ransacked for forms of grisly decay.

    Renaissance in Italy Vol. 3 | John Addington Symonds
  • But the weird woman discovers a very different odor of coming slaughter: "To me the reek is like the breath of charnels."

  • At length the flame quivers,—the air grows cold as the wind in charnels.

    Zanoni | Edward Bulwer Lytton

British Dictionary definitions for charnel

charnel

/ (ˈtʃɑːnəl) /


noun
  1. short for charnel house

adjective
  1. ghastly; sepulchral; deathly

Origin of charnel

1
C14: from Old French: burial place, from Latin carnālis fleshly, carnal

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012