Corpse

• POS: Noun

CIDE DICTIONARY

Corpse, n. [OF. cors (sometimes written corps), F. corps, L. corpus; akin to AS. hrif womb. See Midriff, and cf. Corse, Corselet, Corps, Cuerpo.].

•  A human body in general, whether living or dead; -- sometimes contemptuously.  [1913 Webster]

  " Formerly written (after the French form) corps. See Corps, n., 1."  [1913 Webster]
•  The dead body of a human being; -- used also Fig.  [1913 Webster]

  "He touched the dead corpse of Public Credit, and it sprung upon its feet."  [1913 Webster]

Corpse candle. (a) A thick candle formerly used at a lich wake, or the customary watching with a corpse on the night before its interment. (b) A luminous appearance, resembling the flame of a candle, sometimes seen in churchyards and other damp places, superstitiously regarded as portending death. -- Corpse gate, the gate of a burial place through which the dead are carried, often having a covered porch; -- called also lich gate.

OXFORD DICTIONARY

Corpse, n. a dead (usu. human) body.

Idiom

corpse-candle
1 a lambent flame seen in a churchyard or over a grave, regarded as an omen of death.
2 a lighted candle placed beside a corpse before burial.

Etymology

ME corps, var. spelling of cors (CORSE), f. OF cors f. L corpus body

THESAURUS

Corpse

ashes, barebones, bean pole, beanstalk, body, bones, broomstick, cadaver, carcass, carrion, clay, clothes pole, corpus delicti, crowbait, dead body, dead man, dead person, decedent, dry bones, dust, earth, embalmed corpse, food for worms, lanky, late lamented, mortal remains, mummification, mummy, organic remains, rattlebones, relics, reliquiae, remains, shadow, skeleton, slim, spindlelegs, spindleshanks, stack of bones, stiff, stilt, tenement of clay, the dead, the deceased, the defunct, the departed, the loved one, twiggy, walking skeleton

ROGET THESAURUS

Corpse

Corpse

N corpse, corse, carcass, cadaver, bones, skeleton, dry bones, defunct, relics, reliquiae, remains, mortal remains, dust, ashes, earth, clay, mummy, carrion, food for worms, food for fishes, tenement of clay this mortal coil, shade, ghost, manes, organic remains, fossils, cadaverous, corpse-like, unburied, sapromyiophyllous.