boneyard

noun

ˈbōn-ˌyärd How to pronounce boneyard (audio)
Definition of boneyardnext
as in cemetery
a piece of land used for burying the dead a once-notorious gunslinger who now lies in the forlorn boneyard of an Old West ghost town

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of boneyard Many fire engines are mothballed in city boneyards, and the department has lost nearly 50 more firefighters since the Palisades fire. — Teresa Liu, Daily News, 4 May 2026 Visitors can also participate in boneyard games, a dig site and the Dinos after Dark event. — Alyson Rodriguez, Dallas Morning News, 25 Feb. 2026 Without these organisms, which provide the corals with food and bestow their stunning colors, the reef becomes a boneyard. — Susan Casey, Travel + Leisure, 10 Jan. 2026 The state’s political boneyard has a number of Lake County candidates residing there. — Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 21 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for boneyard
Recent Examples of Synonyms for boneyard
  1. cemetery
  2. graveyard
Noun
  • For King, The American Legion volunteers’ clean-up efforts honored the veterans buried at the cemetery and showed him those individuals have not been forgotten.
    — Caroline Neal, Louisville Courier Journal, 28 Aug. 2026
  • The cemetery Zosia was found in no longer exists on any maps, nor is it referenced in historical records.
    — Mike McRae August 25, New Atlas, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of cemetery
Noun
  • Another recurring ingredient is goopher dust, which consists of soil collected from graveyards.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Aug. 2026
  • With a few wonderful exceptions that proved the rule (The Good Place, New Girl), the network sitcom landscape of the 2010s was a graveyard of glib titles, gimmicky premises, and mercifully short runs.
    — Judy Berman, Time, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of graveyard

Browse Nearby Words

bone (up)
boneyard
boneyards
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Boneyard.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/boneyard. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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