Meanings
plural undertakers
- A funeral director; someone whose business is to manage funerals, burials and cremations.
- historicalA person receiving land in Ireland during the Elizabethan era, so named because they gave an undertaking to abide by several conditions regarding marriage, to be loyal to the crown, and to use English as their spoken language.
In 1588, Edmund Spenser became an undertaker in the first Elizabethan plantation, receiving the forfeited Irish estate of Kilcolman Castle.
- historicalA contractor for the royal revenue in England, one of those who undertook to manage the House of Commons for the king in the Addled Parliament of 1614.
- rareOne who undertakes or commits to doing something.
The undertaker of the enterprise is usually known today by the French term entrepreneur because we have surrendered the English word to the undertakers of funerals.
2001, Technology, Humans, and Society: Toward a Sustainable World1 more example
A company shall not be appointed to be a water undertaker unless it is a limited company or a statutory water company and shall not be appointed to be a sewerage undertaker unless it is a limited company.
1991, Parliament of the United Kingdom, “Part II, Chapter I, section 6(5)”, in Water Industry Act 1991, page 8
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA funeral director; someone whose business is to manage funerals, burials and cremations.
More synonyms by meaning
nounone whose business is the management of funerals
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
Translations
Afrikaans begrafnisondernemer
- begrafnisondernemerfuneral director
Ancient Greek ἐνταφιαστής, ἐγχειρητής
- ἐνταφιαστής (entaphiastḗs)funeral director
- ἐγχειρητής (enkheirētḗs)one who undertakes or commits to doing something
Arabic حَانُوتِيّ
- حَانُوتِيّ (ḥānūtiyy)funeral director
Bengali মুর্দা ফরাশ
- মুর্দা ফরাশ (murda fôraś)funeral director
Bulgarian погребален агент, предприемач
- погребален агентfuneral director
- предприемач (predpriemač)one who undertakes or commits to doing something
Catalan director de pompes fúnebres, directora de pompes fúnebres
- director de pompes fúnebresfuneral director
- directora de pompes fúnebresfuneral director
Chinese Mandarin 承辦殯葬者 /承办殡葬者
- 承辦殯葬者 /承办殡葬者 (chéngbàn bìnzàng zhě)funeral director
Czech pohřebník, funebrák (expr.)
- pohřebníkfuneral director
- funebrák (expr.)funeral director
Danish bedemand
- bedemandfuneral director
Dutch begrafenisondernemer
- begrafenisondernemerfuneral director
Finnish hautausurakoitsija
- hautausurakoitsijafuneral director
French croque-mort, directeur de funérailles
- croque-mortfuneral director
- directeur de funéraillesfuneral director
- directrice de funéraillesfuneral director
- thanatologuefuneral director
- entrepreneurone who undertakes or commits to doing something
German Bestatter, Bestatterin
- Bestatterfuneral director
- Bestatterinfuneral director
- Leichenbestatterfuneral director
- Leichenbestatterinfuneral director
- Beerdigungsunternehmerfuneral director
- Beerdigungsunternehmerinfuneral director
Greek εργολάβος κηδειών
- εργολάβος κηδειών (ergolávos kideión)funeral director
Hungarian temetkezési vállakozó
- temetkezési vállakozófuneral director
Icelandic útfararstjóri
- útfararstjórifuneral director
Irish adhlacóir
- adhlacóirfuneral director
Italian impresario di pompe funebri
- impresario di pompe funebrifuneral director
Japanese 葬儀屋
- 葬儀屋 (sōgiya)funeral director
Korean 장의사
- 장의사 (jang'uisa)funeral director
Latin vespillō, libitīnārius
- vespillōfuneral director
- libitīnāriusfuneral director
- pollīnctor /pollictorfuneral director
- redemptorone who undertakes or commits to doing something
Māori kaiwhakarite uhunga
- kaiwhakarite uhungafuneral director
Norwegian Bokmål begravelsesagent
- begravelsesagentfuneral director
Polish właściciel zakładu pogrzebowego, właścicielka zakładu pogrzebowego
- właściciel zakładu pogrzebowegofuneral director
- właścicielka zakładu pogrzebowegofuneral director
- przedsiębiorcaone who undertakes or commits to doing something
- przedsiębiorczynione who undertakes or commits to doing something
Portuguese agente funerário, cangalheiro
- agente funeráriofuneral director
- cangalheirofuneral director
Romanian antreprenor de pompe funebre, cioclu
- antreprenor de pompe funebrefuneral director
- cioclufuneral director
Russian дире́ктор похоро́нного бюро́, гробовщи́к
- дире́ктор похоро́нного бюро́ (diréktor poxorónnovo bjuró)funeral director
- гробовщи́к (grobovščík)funeral director
Spanish director de funeraria
- director de funerariafuneral director
Swedish begravningsentreprenör
- begravningsentreprenörfuneral director
Thai สัปเหร่อ
- สัปเหร่อ (sàp-bpà-rə̀ə)funeral director
Welsh trefnwr angladdau, ymgymerwr angladdau
- trefnwr angladdaufuneral director
- ymgymerwr angladdaufuneral director
Cite this entry
undertaker. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/undertaker
“undertaker.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/undertaker. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “undertaker,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/undertaker.
Source: undertaker on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.