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Distinguishing Between Core and Corps and Corpse and Corp
These words are frequently confused despite their very different applications. Core and corps both rhyme with more. Core can be a noun, verb, or adjective, but is most often used as a noun to refer to the central or most important part of something (“the core of the issue,” “the Earth’s core”) or to the usually inedible central part of a fruit (“an apple core”). Corps has several meanings, all of which refer to some kind of group: “the Marine Corps,” “the press corps.” Its plural form is also spelled corps (“two corps of reporters”) but is pronounced just as cores is. Unlike in corps, The “p” in corpse and corp is pronounced. Corpse refers to a dead body, and especially to the dead body of a human. Corp is an abbreviation for “corporation” and “corporal.” Corp, corps, and corpse all trace back to the Latin word corpus, meaning “body.” The origin of core is obscure.
Examples of corpse in a Sentence
Keith Phipps, Vulture, 28 Apr. 2025
Durand’s stage presence is undeniable, even as a corpse spending half the show in an upright open coffin.
—Frank Rizzo, Variety, 27 Apr. 2025
The signing corpse in question here is that of a real-life outlaw, a man vividly named Elmer McCurdy, born in Maine in 1880 and variously a plumber, lead miner and boozer who decided that robbing banks and trains was a more lucrative way to pay for his whisky.
—Chris Jones, New York Daily News, 27 Apr. 2025
The corpses started appearing in the early 2000s, hanging from overpasses with threats scrawled on their shirts.
—Antón Barba-Kay, The Atlantic, 26 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for corpse
Cite this Entry
“Corpse.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/corpse. Accessed 2 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
corpse
nounMiddle English corps "human body," from early French corps (same meaning), from Latin corpus "body"
Medical Definition
corpse
noun
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