hearse
hearse — noun
1. A long motor vehicle designed to transport a coffin from the place of a funeral
A long motor vehicle designed to transport a coffin from the place of a funeral service to the cemetery or crematorium, moving as the lead car in a funeral procession.
A black hearse led the funeral procession through the narrow streets of the old town.
procession context: hearse + funeral procession + lead
Mrs. Chen's family walked behind the hearse as it carried her coffin to the church.
possessive reference: [name]'s family + behind the hearse
Floral arrangements covered the roof of the hearse during the ride to the cemetery.
The hearse driver adjusted her black tie before opening the rear door for the mourners.
Friends placed white roses on the hearse before it departed for the crematorium.
- funeral car
A more general term that can include any vehicle used in a funeral, not exclusively one built for carrying a coffin.
- mortuary vehicle
A formal, professional term used by the funeral industry rather than in everyday speech.
用法筆記
The subject or object of a sentence containing 'hearse' is almost always related to funerals — the vehicle itself, the funeral director, or the family of the deceased.
常見錯誤
hearse — verb
1. To lift and position a coffin or the remains of a dead person onto or inside a h
To lift and position a coffin or the remains of a dead person onto or inside a hearse before a funeral.
The attendants carefully hearsed the coffin before the family arrived at the chapel.
rare transitive verb: hearse + direct object (coffin)
Workers hearsed the wooden casket from the chapel pew and secured it inside the vehicle.
The funeral director hearsed the casket at dawn before the morning service.
Before sunrise, the funeral team hearsed the remains of the sailor for the long journey north.
文法句型
hearse + object (coffin / casket / remains)
用法筆記
This sense is extremely rare in modern English and appears almost exclusively in historical or poetic writing. Most speakers today would say 'placed the coffin in the hearse' instead.
2. To transport a coffin or the remains of a dead person by hearse from one place t
To transport a coffin or the remains of a dead person by hearse from one place to another, typically to a funeral location or burial site.
The funeral home hearsed Mr. Tanaka's remains to the cemetery across town.
rare transitive verb with destination: hearse + object + to [place]
A single black vehicle hearsed the soldier's coffin from the airport to the church.
The company hearsed the deceased across the state border for the family burial.
The honor guard hearsed the ashes of the retired general to the national cemetery.
文法句型
hearse + object + to [place]
用法筆記
Use 'convey by hearse' or 'transport by hearse' instead — the verb 'hearse' in this sense is almost never used in modern everyday English.
3. To place a dead person's body in the ground as part of a funeral ceremony; to in
To place a dead person's body in the ground as part of a funeral ceremony; to inter.
The village priest hearsed the old fisherman in the churchyard beside the sea.
archaic usage: hearse = bury
The family hearsed their ancestors in the family plot on the hillside.
Generations of the family were hearsed in the same plot beside the chapel.
Pilgrims hearsed the holy man at the top of the hill overlooking the valley.
- exhume
To dig up a buried body — the opposite of interring.
文法句型
hearse + object (deceased person)
用法筆記
This sense is now archaic. In modern English, the standard verb is 'bury' or 'inter'. Encountering 'hearse' used this way is limited to old literary texts or historical accounts.