The words funeral homes use, in plain English.

An informal gathering focused on the person's life rather than their death. Usually no body present, no set script, and held wherever the family likes — a backyard, a bar, a park.

Cremation with no viewing, no embalming, and no formal service at the funeral home. The body goes from the place of death to the crematory. The family gets the ashes back later.

A short ceremony held at the cemetery plot, before or during burial. Often the only service when families want something simple but in-person.

The family cares for the body and holds the wake at home rather than handing everything to a funeral home. Legal in most of the US, with a few states requiring a funeral director for specific tasks.

Burial shortly after death with no embalming, no viewing, and no formal service at the funeral home. The burial equivalent of direct cremation.

A service to honor the person held without the body present — typically after cremation, direct burial, or body donation.

A funeral with embalming, viewing, a formal service at a funeral home or place of worship, and burial in a cemetery. The most expensive of the common options.

Time at the funeral home when family and friends gather around the body before the funeral. Can be open-casket (body visible) or closed-casket.

An alternative to flame cremation that uses heated water and lye to break the body down to bone fragments. Same result as cremation, less energy, no emissions.

A medical examination of the body, internal and external, to determine cause of death. Ordered by a medical examiner or requested by the family in some cases.

A structure with small niches for holding urns. Found in cemeteries and inside some places of worship. The cremation equivalent of a burial plot.

What is returned after cremation: dry, ground bone fragments weighing roughly 3 to 9 pounds. Despite the nickname, they are not ash in the everyday sense.

Reducing the body to bone fragments and ash using high heat (about 1,400–1,800 °F) over two to three hours. The resulting 'cremated remains' weigh 4–8 pounds for an adult.

A single chamber within a mausoleum that holds one casket. The above-ground equivalent of a grave.

A chemical process that temporarily preserves the body, used mainly to allow a viewing several days after death. Not required by law in most situations.

Burial without embalming, without a metal or hardwood casket, and without a concrete vault — designed to let the body decompose into the soil naturally.

The body is gently transformed into soil over several weeks inside a vessel with wood chips, straw, and alfalfa. Legal in a growing number of states, starting with Washington in 2020.

The act of placing remains in their final resting place — burial in the ground, or placement in a crypt or niche. Placing cremated remains specifically is called inurnment.

An above-ground building that holds caskets in sealed chambers called crypts. An alternative to in-ground burial.

Storing the body in a cooled facility (typically 36–40 °F) to slow decomposition. The legal alternative to embalming in every US state.

Releasing cremated remains in a chosen location — sea, mountain, forest, garden, sports field. Legal in most situations with a few specific rules.

Donating the entire body to medical schools or research programs. Usually free to the family, and many programs cover transport and return the cremated remains afterward.

An unfinished, often cardboard or fiberboard box used for cremation in place of a casket. Crematories require a rigid, combustible container — not a casket.

A simple cloth used to wrap the body for burial instead of a casket. Standard in Jewish and Muslim practice and common in green burial.

The container the body is placed in for viewing and burial. Required for traditional funerals; optional for direct cremation (a cardboard 'alternative container' suffices).

The piece of ground you buy for a burial. Paid to the cemetery, entirely separate from funeral-home charges.

A tapered, six-sided body container, wider at the shoulders and narrow at the feet. In the US the rectangular “casket” has largely replaced it, and people often use the two words interchangeably.

A concrete or composite box that lines the grave and supports the soil above the casket so the ground does not sink. A cheaper, unsealed alternative to a burial vault.

The stone that marks a grave and carries the inscription. Often dramatically cheaper bought from an independent monument dealer than from the cemetery or funeral home.

The container that holds cremated remains. Required only if the family wants something more permanent than the temporary plastic container the crematory provides.

A concrete or metal box placed in the grave around the casket. Required by most cemeteries (not by state law) to keep the ground from settling as the casket decomposes.

Charges the funeral home pays to a third party on the family's behalf and passes through — death certificates, clergy honoraria, obituary placement, flowers.

A fee some funeral homes try to charge when a family buys a casket from a third party (Costco, Amazon, an online supplier). Illegal under federal law.

A small whole-life policy, usually $5,000–$25,000, marketed to cover funeral costs. Easy to qualify for, but expensive per dollar of coverage.

The federal regulation governing what funeral homes can and cannot do. In effect since 1984. Enforced by the Federal Trade Commission.

A small whole-life insurance policy ($5,000–$25,000) marketed to cover funeral costs. Often expensive relative to the payout. A separate savings account usually outperforms it.

The itemized price list every funeral home in the US is legally required to give you on request — in person, by phone, or by email.

The one fee a funeral home is allowed to charge every family regardless of what services they pick. Covers overhead — facility, staff time, paperwork.

A fund that pays for the ongoing upkeep of a cemetery — mowing, landscaping, repairs. Financed by setting aside a portion of every plot sale, and often charged as a separate fee.

A casket bought from a source other than the funeral home — Costco, Walmart, online dealers, local casket stores. Federal law requires the funeral home to accept it without a handling fee.

The county-issued permit that authorizes moving the body and completing burial, cremation, or other disposition. Required in every US state.

The signed form, completed by the legal next of kin or named agent, that authorizes the crematory to proceed. Because cremation is irreversible, states require explicit written consent.

The official government document recording the death. Required for almost everything that comes after — bank accounts, insurance, Social Security, probate, transferring property.

The person legally authorized to make decisions about the body, burial, and arrangements. Order is set by state law, not by who was emotionally closest.

The legal right to decide what happens to a body after death — cremation versus burial, where, and when. Follows the same hierarchy as next of kin.

A named recipient for a specific account — life insurance, 401(k), IRA, payable-on-death bank accounts. Overrides the will. Passes outside probate.

Everything a person owns at death — real estate, accounts, vehicles, and belongings — minus their debts. The estate is what gets settled and distributed.

The person legally responsible for settling a deceased person's estate — paying debts, filing taxes, distributing assets per the will. Named in the will, or appointed by the court if there is none.

Dying without a valid will. State law (the 'intestate succession statute') determines who inherits what — usually spouse and children first, then parents, siblings, and outward.

The legal document that says who gets what and names an executor. It still goes through probate — it does not avoid it. Without one, state intestacy law decides.

The court document that proves the executor has legal authority to act on behalf of the estate. Required to access the deceased's bank accounts, sell property, and most other estate business.

A simple way to pass a bank account, brokerage account, or vehicle title to a named person at death without going through probate. Set with the institution on a form.

Authority to act for someone while they are alive — signing documents, managing money, making decisions. It ends the moment they die.

The court-supervised process of validating a will (if there is one), paying debts, and transferring the deceased's property to heirs. Required in most cases, though some assets bypass it.

A sworn form that lets heirs collect a modest estate's assets without full probate, when the estate falls under the state's dollar threshold.

Arrangements made after the death has occurred. The opposite of pre-need. The vast majority of funeral arrangements happen this way.

Arrangements made before death — picking services, choosing a casket or urn, sometimes paying in advance. Done by the person who will die or by family on their behalf.

A trained officiant — usually non-religious — who writes and leads a personalized ceremony. An alternative to clergy for families who want a service without a religious framework.

The official who investigates deaths that did not happen under medical supervision — sudden deaths, accidents, suspicious deaths, deaths of unknown cause. The body stays in their custody until the investigation releases it.

A non-licensed support person who helps families through the end of life, the moment of death, and immediate aftercare — washing the body, holding a vigil, filing paperwork.

The licensed professional who performs embalming — the chemical preservation of a body. May or may not be the same person as the funeral director.

The licensed professional who coordinates arrangements, files the paperwork, oversees care of the body, and runs the service. Also called a mortician or undertaker.

One of the people who carry or escort the casket. Usually six, given the weight. Honorary pallbearers walk alongside without lifting.