Word of the Day: sacrosanct

The word sacrosanct has appeared in 50 articles on NYTimes.com in the past year, including on Jan. 19 in “A Famed Cemetery Is Nearly Full. Can It Reuse Old Graves to Add More Space?” by Isabella Kwai:

The proposal will, for the moment, affect only about 500 graves in the cemetery, Dr. Dungavell said. Some grave owners were last registered in the 1870s. Others were simply too hard to trace, and the cemetery has spread the word by posting public notices about plots set to be repurposed. Owners of those graves will have until July to object to their reuse.

For graves without objections, the existing remains will be interred deeper into the same spot, and new burials will take place on top of them.

The idea is contentious, as was evident on a visit to the cemetery this week. Even on a chilly day, visitors were weaving through tree-lined pathways to take in epitaphs from artists, philosophers and beloved residents.

“To me, it’s kind of sacrosanct,” said Thomas Swinburne, 57, who was visiting London from the northeast of England. “The body’s at rest. I wouldn’t want any of my family members disturbed in that way.”

Daily Word Challenge

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