catacomb

Meaning

Noun

• An underground system of tunnels and chambers with recesses for graves, used (in former times) as a cemetery; a tunnel system used for burying the dead, as in Paris or Ancient Rome.

Origin

• From Old English, from Late Latin catacumbas, name of the underground cemetery of St. Sebastian in Rome, dissimilation of Latin cata- ("among") (from Ancient Greek κατά ("under")) + tumbas (from Ancient Greek τύμβος ("swell")).