coffin

cof-fin · noun

imported

Definitions

noun

  1. 1.

    A long box in which a dead body is buried or cremated.

  2. 2.

    To place in a coffin.

  3. 3.

    (figurative) Something resembling a coffin or suggesting death.

Forms

plural: coffins

Phrases & expressions

  • •
    nail in the coffin — something that hastens failure or death
  • •
    coffin nail — (slang) a cigarette
  • •
    drive a nail into someone's coffin — to do something harmful

Related words

See also: burial, casket, funeral, grave
Synonyms: burial box, casket

Etymology

From Old French "cofin" meaning a small basket, from Latin "cophinus" meaning basket, from Greek "kophinos."