1. inscriptions on tombstones or monuments commemorating deceased persons

Examples

• The old cemetery contained epitaphs dating back to the 1800s.
• She spent hours reading the epitaphs on the weathered headstones.
• The poet’s epitaph simply read ‘Here lies one whose name was writ in water.’
• Many epitaphs include birth and death dates along with brief messages.
• The historian collected epitaphs from Civil War soldiers’ graves.
• Some epitaphs are written in Latin or other ancient languages.
• The family chose a simple epitaph for their grandmother’s memorial.