Monument

How to spell monument

8 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce monument

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does monument mean?

1. nounA structure, statue, or building erected to commemorate a person or event, or a place of historic importance.

Monument in a sentence

• The war monument in the town square is cleaned every spring.

• Tourists queued for hours to photograph the ancient stone monument.

Where does monument come from?

Language of origin: Latin

Monument comes from the Latin monumentum, which meant a memorial, a statue, or anything that serves to remind people of a person or event. It was built on the verb monere, meaning 'to remind' or 'to warn', so at its root a monument is literally a 'reminding thing', an object that keeps a memory alive. English took the word in during the 1300s through Old French, where it kept the spelling and sense largely intact. The same monere root sits inside familiar relatives such as 'monitor' (something that warns or watches) and 'admonish' (to warn), which is a useful clue that the middle of the word is mon, not man. Over time the meaning broadened from a tomb or memorial to include great buildings, statues, and protected natural landmarks.

How the word is built

• mon- (from monere: to remind, warn)
• -ment (noun suffix meaning a thing or means of doing)