crypt

UK: /ˈkrɪpt/ US: /krɪpt/ ,(kript)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

crypt /krɪpt/   n. [countable]

1. Architecture an underground chamber or vault, used as a burial place.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

crypt  (kript), n. 

1. a subterranean chamber or vault, esp. one beneath the main floor of a church, used as a burial place, a location for secret meetings, etc.
2. Anatomy a slender pit or recess;
   a small glandular cavity.

• Latin, as above
• Greek krypté̄ hidden place, noun, nominal use of feminine of kryptós hidden, verbid of krýptein to hide; replacing earlier crypta
• Latin crypta
• 1375–1425 for sense "grotto''; 1555–65 for current senses; late Middle English cripte

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

crypt / krɪpt/ noun

1. a cellar, vault, or underground chamber, esp beneath a church, where it is often used as a chapel, burial place, etc

Etymology: 18th Century: from Latin crypta, from Greek kruptē vault, secret place, from kruptos hidden, from kruptein to hide