cairn

noun

: a heap of stones piled up as a memorial or as a landmark
cairned adjective

Examples of cairn in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Most remarkable is the cairn-tomb of Gavrinis, one of Europe's great repositories of megalithic art, its interior replete with swirling patterns carved into the rock some 6,000 years ago. The Week Uk, theweek, 12 Oct. 2024 The bones excavated at the site were returned to King William Island in 1994 and interred in a memorial cairn. Katie Hunt, CNN, 11 Oct. 2024 Inside every cairn, the team unearthed countless human and animal bones, often fragmented. Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 28 Mar. 2025 The bones excavated at the site were returned to King William Island in 1994 and interred in a memorial cairn. Katie Hunt, CNN, 11 Oct. 2024 See All Example Sentences for cairn

Word History

Etymology

Middle English (Scots) carne, from Scottish Gaelic carn; akin to Old Irish & Welsh carn cairn

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of cairn was in the 15th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Cairn.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cairn. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.

Kids Definition

cairn

noun
ˈka(ə)rn How to pronounce cairn (audio)
ˈke(ə)rn
: a heap of stones piled up as a landmark or as a memorial

More from Merriam-Webster on cairn

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