Meaning & use
eulogy
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Meanings
nouncountable
A speech given at a funeral that praises the person who has died and remembers their life.
Grammar: Often used with deliver or give: she delivered the eulogy.
Patterns
- deliver a eulogy for someone
- a eulogy to someone
His daughter gave a moving eulogy that made everyone laugh and cry.
I was asked to write a eulogy for my grandmother.
The pastor's eulogy recalled the man's generosity to neighbors.
nouncountableformal
Any speech or piece of writing that praises someone or something very highly.
Grammar: Used more loosely and formally: a eulogy to someone's courage.
Patterns
- a eulogy to something
- a eulogy of someone
The review was a eulogy to the actor's long career.
The newspaper published a eulogy to the retiring headmaster.
Her essay turned into a eulogy to the city of her birth.
Word forms
| plural | eulogies |
|---|
Common combinations
- deliver a eulogy
- He was too emotional to deliver the eulogy.
- write a eulogy
- She sat up all night to write a eulogy.
- moving eulogy
- The moving eulogy brought tears to the mourners.
- funeral eulogy
- A funeral eulogy usually lasts about five minutes.
- give a eulogy
- Would you give a eulogy at the memorial?
Synonyms and how they differ
- tribute
- A tribute can be any public show of respect, including a gift or event, whereas a eulogy is spoken or written praise.
- panegyric
- Panegyric is a formal, often elaborate speech of praise for the living or dead, while eulogy is more linked to funerals.
- elegy
- An elegy is a sad poem or song for the dead, while a eulogy is a speech of praise.
- obituary
- An obituary is a published notice of a death with a short biography, not a speech.
Opposites
Word family
- eulogize verb
- to praise someone highly in speech or writing
- eulogist noun
- a person who delivers a eulogy
- eulogistic adjective
- full of praise
Commonly confused: eulogy or elegy? eulogy or euology?
eulogy vs elegy
An elegy is a mournful poem, while a eulogy is a speech of praise.
eulogy vs euology
Euology is a misspelling; the correct word is eulogy.
Practice
At the funeral, her son gave a ___ praising her kindness.
Choose one answer.
A eulogy is a speech of praise given at a funeral. An elegy is a poem of mourning and does not match the spoken tribute.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “eulogy”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.