dolmen

[ dohl-men, -muhn, dol- ]

noun

, Archaeology.

1. a structure usually regarded as a tomb, consisting of two or more large, upright stones set with a space between and capped by a horizontal stone.

dolmen

/ ˈdɒlmɛn /

noun

1. (in British archaeology) a Neolithic stone formation, consisting of a horizontal stone supported by several vertical stones, and thought to be a tomb
2. (in French archaeology) any megalithic tomb

Other Words From

• dol·men·ic [dohl-, men, -ik, dol-], adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of dolmen¹

First recorded in 1855–60; from French, from Cornish, form of tolmen “hole of stone” (taken by French archaeologists to mean cromlech ), from toll “hole” (compare Irish toll, Welsh twll ) + men “stone” ( menhir ); alternatively, perhaps from a corruption of Breton taol “table” (from Latin tabula; table ) + maen “stone”

Word History and Origins

Origin of dolmen¹

C19: from French, probably from Old Breton tol table, from Latin tabula board + Breton mēn stone, of Celtic origin; see table

Example Sentences

In all likelihood, the people buried in the dolmen were farmers.

From Science Daily

The first of these periods, which corresponds to the Neolithic, coincides with a spread in the use of dolmens designed for collective burials.

From Science Daily

In ink and watercolor, Lundbye portrays an artist drawing the coastal landscape outdoors, as he leans back against a funerary dolmen with sketchpad in hand.

From Los Angeles Times

In several landscapes, including Lundbye’s, a distinctive nonnatural element recurs: a prehistoric stone structure of upright boulders with a capstone known as a dolmen.

From New York Times

It wasn’t long before his team dug up the dolmen’s entryway, a portal so narrow that the structure could have been built by benevolent giants for a colony of hobbits.

From New York Times