What do you say in a eulogy?

You say who the person was, in specifics. Open with one true detail or a short story, say what they were like and what they loved, share a moment that shows it, and close with what you will carry forward or how you will miss them. You do not need to cover their whole life — a eulogy is a portrait, not a biography.

How long should a eulogy be?

About three to five minutes, which is roughly 500 to 750 words read aloud. Shorter is almost always better than longer. If you have more to say than that, choose the one or two stories that say the most and let the rest go — the room will remember a few vivid moments far better than a long list.

How do you start a eulogy?

Start with a specific detail or a small story rather than 'We are gathered here today.' Something like 'My grandmother kept butterscotch in her coat pocket for thirty years' puts the person in the room immediately. You can introduce who you are in a line, but lead with them, not with the occasion.

June 27, 20267 min read

Eulogy Examples: Short and Longer Samples to Help You Start

A eulogy is just you, telling the truth about someone, out loud. It does not need to be long, or grand, or perfectly written. It needs to sound like them, and like you. If you are staring at a blank page, the examples below can give you a shape to start from. The people are invented; the way they work is real.

A short eulogy

Three minutes is plenty. This one leans on one image and one story, and lets them do the work:

Short eulogy

My grandmother kept butterscotch candies in her coat pocket for as long as I knew her, and she gave them out like small blessings — to grandchildren, to the man at the bank, to anyone who looked like they needed one. That was Rose. She believed the world was mostly improvable with a little sweetness and a lot of stubbornness. She raised four children on a teacher’s salary, won every argument she ever entered, and could make a stranger feel like an old friend in about ninety seconds. The last time I saw her, she pressed a butterscotch into my hand and told me not to waste my one wild life worrying. I still have it. I am not going to eat it. I am going to try, instead, to be a little more like her — a little sweeter, a lot more stubborn, and never without something to offer the person in front of me.

A longer eulogy

When you have a little more time, two or three short stories build a fuller portrait than any list of accomplishments could:

Longer eulogy

I want to tell you about my father in the only way that would have made sense to him: in stories, and as briefly as I can manage, because he hated a long speech. Daniel was a plumber for forty years. He used to say there was no honor in a thing that looked finished but leaked — which was, I came to understand, his whole philosophy of life. Do it right where no one can see, and it will hold. He fixed everything in our house and half the things in the neighborhood, usually for nothing, usually grumbling, always showing up. When I was ten, my bike chain broke a mile from home and I called him in tears. He drove out, looked at it for a second, and instead of fixing it he taught me how, there on the side of the road, his hands over mine. It took an hour. We were both late for dinner. I have thought about that hour more than almost any other in my life. That was the gift — not that he fixed things, but that he taught you to. He met my mother at a wedding where he was, of course, fixing the caterer’s sink, and he loved her for forty-one years with the same quiet competence he brought to everything. He was not a man of big words. So I will borrow his: do it right where no one can see. We will miss you, Dad. We will try to make it hold.

What a eulogy usually includes

There is no required form, but most eulogies move through some of these:

An opening that puts the person in the room — a detail, an image, or a short story.
Who they were: what they were like, what they loved, what they believed.
One or two stories that show it, rather than tell it.
What they gave you, or taught you, or what you will carry forward.
A close — a line of thanks, a goodbye, or something in their own words.

A little more help

If you want the full method, our guide on how to write a eulogy walks through it step by step, and our piece on how to give a eulogy without falling apart is for the part that happens on the day. If you would like a reading to sit beside it, our collection of funeral poems and readings is a gentle place to look.

Common questions

What do you say in a eulogy?: You say who the person was, in specifics. Open with one true detail or a short story, say what they were like and what they loved, share a moment that shows it, and close with what you will carry forward or how you will miss them. You do not need to cover their whole life — a eulogy is a portrait, not a biography.
How long should a eulogy be?: About three to five minutes, which is roughly 500 to 750 words read aloud. Shorter is almost always better than longer. If you have more to say than that, choose the one or two stories that say the most and let the rest go — the room will remember a few vivid moments far better than a long list.
How do you start a eulogy?: Start with a specific detail or a small story rather than 'We are gathered here today.' Something like 'My grandmother kept butterscotch in her coat pocket for thirty years' puts the person in the room immediately. You can introduce who you are in a line, but lead with them, not with the occasion.