Skip to the word

Added 7 October 2026

dirge

/dɜːdʒ/ noun

In Latin: nēnia, mortuālium, aelinos Wiktionary

noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about dirge at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

A mournful poem or piece of music composed or performed as a memorial to a deceased person.
A song or piece of music that is considered too slow, bland or boring.

verb

To sing dirges

Origin

From Middle English dirige, from Latin dirige (“steer, direct”), from the beginning of the first antiphon in matins for the dead, Dirige, Domine, deus meus, in conspectu tuo viam meam. Doublet of dirige.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

Back to today's word