/ məˈmɔːriəl; NAmE / noun , adjective
■ noun memorial (to sb/sth)
1.
[ C ] a statue, stone, etc. that is built in order to remind people of an important past event or of a famous person who has died :
a war memorial (= in memory of soldiers who died in a war)
a memorial to victims of the Holocaust
2.
[ sing. ] a thing that will continue to remind people of sb/sth :
The painting will be a lasting memorial to a remarkable woman.
■ adjective
[ only before noun ] created or done in order to remember sb who has died :
a memorial statue / plaque / prize
The memorial service will be held at a local church.
the John F Kennedy Memorial Hospital
••
WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English : from late Latin memoriale record, memory, monument, from Latin memorialis serving as a reminder, from memoria memory.