hearselike
noun
1.
a vehicle for conveying a dead person to the place of burial.
2.
a triangular frame for holding candles, used at the service of Tenebrae in Holy Week.
3.
a canopy erected over a tomb.
Origin:
1250–1300; Middle English herse < Middle French herce a harrow < Latin hirpicem, accusative of hirpex
1250–1300; Middle English herse < Middle French herce a harrow < Latin hirpicem, accusative of hirpex
Related forms
hearse·like, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To hearselike
Collins
World English Dictionary
hearse (hɜːs) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| a vehicle, such as a specially designed car or carriage, used to carry a coffin to a place of worship and ultimately to a cemetery or crematorium | |
| [C14: from Old French herce, from Latin hirpex harrow] | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
00:10
Hearselike
is always a great word to know.
So is ninnyhammer. Does it mean:
| a fool or simpleton; ninny. |
| a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc. |
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
hearse
1291 (in Anglo-Latin), "flat framework for candles, hung over a coffin," from O.Fr. herce "long rake, harrow," from M.L. hercia, from L. hirpicem (nom. hirpex) "harrow," from Oscan hirpus "wolf," supposedly in allusion to its teeth. The Oscan word may be related to L. hirsutus "shaggy, bristly." So called
because it resembled a harrow, a large rake for breaking up soil. Sense extended to other temporary frameworks built over dead people, then to "vehicle for carrying a body," a sense first recorded 1650.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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