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morgue Definition

morgue (môrg)

noun

  1. a place where the bodies of unknown dead persons or those dead of unknown causes are kept to be examined, identified, etc. before burial or cremation
  2. ☆

    Etymology: so named in ref. to the dead news it contains

    the collection of back numbers, photographs, clippings, etc. kept in the office of a newspaper, magazine, etc.

Etymology: Fr, morgue, earlier, identification room of a prison: orig., “haughty air” < dial. morre, snout: see moraine

morgue Synonyms

morgue

n.

  1. A place where the dead are received

    funeral home, funeral parlor, the undertaker's, mortuary, deadhouse, charnel house.

  2. The library of a newspaper

    archives, reference room, photographic collection, file; see library, museum.

morgue Usage Examples

Possessives

city: Hundreds of people converged on the city's morgue to help identify victims.

Converse of object

  • visit: Schoedsack actually visited a morgue to discover how heads were preserved in alcohol.
  • check: Then I went to check the morgue, and his body was gone.
  • become: What was once a vibrant and rich country has become a morgue.
  • enter: LANGENHAHN enters the morgue and turns on the lights.

Adjective modifier

  • makeshift: For example, during the 7 July bombings in London, we made sure there were makeshift morgues available.
  • local: The bodies were pulled out this morning and taken to the local morgue.
  • temporary: Those killed in the disaster are laid to rest in a temporary morgue.
  • central: The London central morgue alone accounts for roughly 39,000 bodies annually.
  • topic: Re: Welcome to the Off Topic morgue The off-topic forum, 23-Jul-2006 07:20 how dare you assume we are all in bed?

Modifies a noun

  • drawer: Q: When you are bundled up in a straight jacket and placed in the morgue drawer, it's very frightening to watch.
  • file: The term " morgue file " is popular in the newspaper business to describe the file that holds past issues.
  • assistant: Morgue assistant manager Doctor Abdul Razzaq al-Obaidi said that about 90 percent had died violently.
  • record: They're based on morgue records and media reports which can't be remotely comprehensive given the hellish situation in Iraq at the moment.

Noun used with modifier

  • hospital: On my second day I was told to take a trolley from a ward to the hospital morgue.
  • city: The body of a man who had been decapitated was in the city morgue on Saturday.
  • newspaper: At many points in your career you will not be able to rely on the services of librarians, newspaper morgues and so on.