1. (

• ceremony ,
• ceremonial ,
• ceremonial_occasion ,
• observance ,

) a formal event performed on a special occasion; "a ceremony commemorating Pearl Harbor" ;

2. (

• ceremony ,

) any activity that is performed in an especially solemn elaborate or formal way; "the ceremony of smelling the cork and tasting the wine"; "he makes a ceremony of addressing his golf ball"; "he disposed of it without ceremony" ;

3. (

• ceremony

) the proper or conventional behavior on some solemn occasion; "an inaugural ceremony" ;