What does "coffin" mean?
A closed box in which the body of a dead person is placed for burial.
Coffin
/ˈkɒfɪn/ name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Moderate ·College level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A closed box in which the body of a dead person is placed for burial.
- Grammar: coffin is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: casket, bottle, bottle up, box.
- Useful contrasts: urn.
- Usage evidence: With heads respectfully bowed, they carried the coffin up the steps and into the small chapel.
How to use "coffin"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "coffin" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "coffin" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "coffin" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "coffin" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "coffin" is acting as name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "casket" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "coffin", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A closed box in which the body of a dead person is placed for burial.
"[…] Passing the apple-tree blows of white and pink in the orchards, / Carrying a corpse to where it shall rest in the grave, / Night and day journeys a coffin."
- 2 An exploratory trench used when first digging a mine. Cornwall, obsolete
- 3 box in which a corpse is buried or cremated wordnet
- 4 The eighth Lenormand card.
- 5 A deep ditch. Cornwall, broadly
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 A casing or crust, or a mold, of pastry, as for a pie. archaic
"Of the paste a coffin I will rear."
- 7 A conical paper bag, used by grocers. obsolete
"The smoke of this Hearbe, which they receaue at the mouth through certaine coffins, suche as the Grocers do vse to put in their Spices."
- 8 The hollow crust or hoof of a horse's foot, below the coronet, in which is the coffin bone.
- 9 A storage container for nuclear waste.
- 10 A combination fence obstacle where the horse jumps a set of rails, strides downhill to a ditch, and then goes back uphill to another jump.
Verb
- 1 To place in a coffin. transitive
"Indians do not hinder the progress of their dead by embalming or tight coffining."
- 2 place into a coffin wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"With heads respectfully bowed, they carried the coffin up the steps and into the small chapel."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "coffin"?
Common synonyms include: casket, bottle, bottle up, box, box in, burial box.
How do you use "coffin" in a sentence?
With heads respectfully bowed, they carried the coffin up the steps and into the small chapel.
How do you pronounce "coffin"?
Pronounced /ˈkɒfɪn/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English coffyn, from Old Northern French cofin (“sarcophagus", earlier "basket, coffer”), from Latin cophinus (“basket”), a loanword from Ancient Greek κόφινος (kóphinos, “a basket”). Doublet of coffer.
Etymology 2
Borrowed from Cornish koghyn (“exploratory trench”), with spelling likely influenced by etymology 1.