lachrymatory.

1. A small ancient vessel traditionally described as a container for mourners' tears, though many such finds are interpreted as perfume or ointment vessels.

2. Producing tears by irritating the eyes or stimulating tear secretion.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• an ancient lachrymatory
• a glass lachrymatory
• a reputed lachrymatory

On the page

The label called the glass vessel a lachrymatory, then noted the uncertainty of its supposed use.

She kept the reputed lachrymatory in a cabinet beside objects whose stories had outlasted their evidence.

Usage notes

Primary category: gothic. Forms: Singular lachrymatory; plural lachrymatories. Also a non-gradable relational adjective. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings.