mummified

mummified — verb

1. to treat a dead body with special chemicals, wrap it tightly in cloth, and dry i

1.動詞及物C1
釋義

to treat a dead body with special chemicals, wrap it tightly in cloth, and dry it so that it does not decay — a practice used especially in ancient Egypt and other early cultures

例句

Ancient Egyptian priests carefully mummified the bodies of their pharaohs to prepare them for the afterlife.

mummify + body + of + person — direct object naming the deceased

Rohan watched a documentary about how the Chinchorro people of Chile mummified their dead more than seven thousand years ago.

how + [culture] mummified their dead — cultural/archaeological context

同義詞
  • embalm

    a narrower process — embalming is the chemical step within mummification, which also includes drying and wrapping

  • preserve

    a more general term for keeping something from decaying, not specific to bodies or ancient methods

反義詞
  • decompose

    the natural decay that mummification prevents

  • decay

    what happens to a body when it is not mummified

文法句型

mummify + object (a dead body)

be mummified (passive)

mummify + body + with + material

用法筆記

Often used in the passive or in historical descriptions. The object is typically a dead body or a specific animal species. Distinguish from sense 2 (DRIED & SHRIVELED), which is about accidental drying rather than deliberate preservation.

常見錯誤

❌The Egyptians mummified the cat and put it on display.' (grammatically fine but the word 'taxidermy' would describe preserving fur/skin for display).
✅The Egyptians mummified the cat and placed it in a tomb as a sacred offering.
💡Mummification was a ritual practice, not taxidermy.
❌She mummified the fruit to keep it fresh.' (mummifying requires deliberate embalming of a body, not just any food preservation).
✅The ancient bodies were mummified with natron salts and linen bandages.

2. to become extremely dry and wrinkled, losing all moisture until the original sha

2.動詞及物 / 不及物C1
釋義

to become extremely dry and wrinkled, losing all moisture until the original shape is shrunken and hardened, like an ancient mummy

例句

The slices of apple left on the windowsill mummified within a week under the hot sun.

intransitive: [food] mummified in/under [dry condition]

Elena found a mummified lizard behind the old garden shed where no rain had reached it for years.

同義詞
  • shrivel

    commoner word for wrinkling and shrinking from dryness, but without the mummy-like hardness

  • desiccate

    more formal; emphasizes moisture removal but not the visual result of wrinkling

  • dehydrate

    general term for losing water, not specific to visible shrivelling

反義詞
  • rehydrate

    to restore moisture that mummification removes

  • moisten

    to add moisture back

文法句型

[thing] mummified (intransitive)

[dry condition] mummified [thing] (transitive)

[thing] was mummified by [dry condition] (passive)

用法筆記

Can be used as an intransitive verb (things mummify on their own) or transitively (dry conditions mummify things). Frequently appears as the past participle (a mummified apple, mummified skin). Unlike sense 1, no human intention is involved.

常見錯誤

❌The bread mummified in the bag.' (bread goes mouldy or stale, not mummified — mummification implies extreme, complete dryness with shape retention).
✅The bread mummified inside the hot, abandoned car over the summer.
💡extreme heat and dryness can produce mummy-like results.