Meaning & use
inter
Last updated
UK/ɪnˈtɜː/
US/ɪnˈtɝː/
Meaning
verbtransitiveformal
To put a dead body into a grave or tomb as part of a burial.
Grammar: Takes an object, often in the passive: he was interred in the churchyard.
Patterns
- inter someone
- be interred in somewhere
The poet was interred beside his wife in the village cemetery.
Soldiers were interred on the hillside after the battle.
Word forms
| third person singular | inters |
|---|---|
| past tense | interred |
| past participle | interred |
| -ing form | interring |
Common combinations
- be interred in
- The king was interred in the abbey.
- interred beneath
- Several families are interred beneath the chapel floor.
- inter the remains
- They will inter the remains on Friday.
Synonyms and how they differ
- bury
- The everyday word; inter is more formal and ceremonial.
- entomb
- Specifically places a body in a tomb, or traps someone as if in one.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: inter or inter-?
inter vs inter-
The prefix inter- means between or among, as in international; the verb inter means bury.
Practice
After the service, the general was ___ in the national cemetery.
Choose one answer.
Interred means buried. Interned means held as a prisoner, which does not fit a funeral context.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “inter”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.
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