monument

noun

mon·​u·​ment ˈmän-yə-mənt 

1

obsolete : a burial vault : sepulchre

2

: a written legal document or record : treatise

3

a(1)

: a lasting evidence, reminder, or example of someone or something notable or great

(2)

: a distinguished person

b

: a memorial stone or a building erected in remembrance of a person or event

4

archaic : an identifying mark : evidence

also : portent, sign

5

obsolete : a carved statue : effigy

6

: a boundary or position marker (such as a stone)

7

: national monument

8

: a written tribute

Synonyms

• gravestone
• headstone
• stone
• tombstone

Examples of monument in a Sentence

They have erected a monument in his honor.

the Quakers disapproved of monuments, regarding them as idolatrous, so thousands of Nantucketers spend their eternal rest in complete anonymity

Recent Examples on the Web

The order includes provisions seeking to reinstate monuments, memorials and statues that were removed or altered since January 2020. —Brittney Melton, NPR, 31 Mar. 2025

The Trump administration is leaving no stone unturned in its push to erase the legacy of 2020's racial reckoning, including by restoring monuments to Confederate leaders who fought to preserve slavery. —Russell Contreras, Axios, 30 Mar. 2025

Scattered across the desert of Djibouti, a country in eastern Africa, are countless stone monuments built as graves over 1,200 years ago. —Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 28 Mar. 2025

The quake was especially damaging to Myanmar’s historic and religious sites, reducing centuries-old monuments to rubble. —Lynsey Chutel, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin monumentum, literally, memorial, from monēre to remind — more at mind

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing monument

• national monument

Kids Definition

monument

noun

mon·​u·​ment ˈmän-yə-mənt 

1

: something that serves as a memorial

especially : a building, pillar, stone, or statue honoring a person or event

2

: a work, saying, or deed that lasts or that is worth preserving

the book is a monument of scholarship

3

: a boundary marker (as a stone)

4

: a place of historic interest or natural beauty set aside and maintained by the government as public property