churchyard

noun

church·​yard ˈchərch-ˌyärd How to pronounce churchyard (audio)
Synonyms of churchyardnext
: a yard that belongs to a church and is often used as a burial ground

Examples of churchyard in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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The 19 monks and their dog, Aloka, walked 2,300 miles across several Southern states — sometimes in frigid conditions — drawing large crowds in churchyards, city halls and town squares. Deepa Bharath, Los Angeles Times, 11 Feb. 2026 Preferring to sleep each night in tents pitched outdoors, the monks have been surprised to see their message transcend ideologies, drawing huge crowds into churchyards, city halls and town squares across six states. Deepa Bharath, Fortune, 11 Jan. 2026 An unusual structural failure recently caused a dramatic, sinkhole-like collapse in an historic English churchyard — revealing a 300-year-old family vault. Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 26 Nov. 2025 Installing pipework through the churchyard for the heat pumps, which are in a fenced enclosure nearby, was a painstaking process. Chris Baraniuk, Wired News, 13 Nov. 2025 See All Example Sentences for churchyard

Word History

First Known Use

12th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of churchyard was in the 12th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Churchyard.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/churchyard. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.

Kids Definition

churchyard

noun
church·​yard ˈchərch-ˌyärd How to pronounce churchyard (audio)
: a yard that belongs to a church and is often used as a burial ground

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