/ kɔːps; NAmE kɔːrps/ noun , verb
■ noun
a dead body, especially of a human
■ verb
[ v , vn ] ( BrE , informal ) (in the theatre) to suddenly be unable to act, because you have forgotten your words or are laughing; to cause sb to do this
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WORD ORIGIN
Middle English (denoting the living body of a person or animal): alteration of archaic corse by association with Latin corpus , a change which also took place in French ( Old French cors becoming corps ). The p was originally silent, as in French; the final e was rare before the 19th cent., but now distinguishes corpse from corps .