as in abyss
a social sphere that exists outside of the mainstream
a magazine article taking an insightful look at the underworld inhabited by street people
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Recent Examples of underworld
The darkly comic story follows Shy and Lola, two very different women who are forced to become allies when a murder entangles them in the criminal underworld operating in Shy’s small coastal town in the North of England.
—
Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 23 Feb. 2026
His death removes one of the most dominant figures in Mexico’s criminal underworld and could reshape the balance of power among rival cartels.
—Greg Wehner, FOXNews.com, 22 Feb. 2026
At the bottom of the composition is the figure of Charon, a personage from Greek mythology who rowed souls over the river Styx to enter the pagan underworld.
—Virginia Raguin, The Conversation, 19 Feb. 2026
Ultimately, Brobbey’s brief, if terrifying, brush with Amsterdam’s criminal underworld has not derailed his football career.
—Simon Hughes, New York Times, 17 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for underworld
Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 23 Feb. 2026
His death removes one of the most dominant figures in Mexico’s criminal underworld and could reshape the balance of power among rival cartels.
—Greg Wehner, FOXNews.com, 22 Feb. 2026
At the bottom of the composition is the figure of Charon, a personage from Greek mythology who rowed souls over the river Styx to enter the pagan underworld.
—Virginia Raguin, The Conversation, 19 Feb. 2026
Ultimately, Brobbey’s brief, if terrifying, brush with Amsterdam’s criminal underworld has not derailed his football career.
—Simon Hughes, New York Times, 17 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for underworld
Recent Examples of Synonyms for underworld
Noun
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His investigation is a testament to the power of perseverance, albeit a perseverance that threatens to turn into an obsession that could drag him into the abyss à la Captain Ahab.—
Paul Fitzgerald,
Rolling Stone,
3 Mar. 2026
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The horror has come now like a storm— what if this night prefigured the night after death— what if all thereafter was an eternal quivering on the edge of an abyss, with everything base and vicious in oneself urging one forward and the baseness and viciousness of the world just ahead.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Now, in an age of instant communications, their Cold War counterparts could nonetheless disappear into a covert netherworld, loosening Washington’s controls and freeing them to plot coups, mobilize armies, and install governments.—
Alfred McCoy,
Literary Hub,
26 Feb. 2026
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Girand’s journey into this netherworld was sparked by neighborhood chaos and an attempt to understand what was happening.—
Teri Sforza,
Oc Register,
12 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Though not nearly as far from the depths as Sam.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
13 Mar. 2026
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Mahdi and Khadija had been struck by drought, and their bed was dry and desiccated, waterless down to its depths.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
12 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Often considered the most scathing film ever made about the movie industry, The Day of the Locust is an adaptation of Nathanael West’s celebrated novel about a down-and-out artist turned set painter and the Los Angeles demimonde during the Great Depression.—
Erik Morse,
Vogue,
23 Oct. 2025
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One thing was certain: Per its title, it was set in the demimonde of the galaxy far, far away, among its scoundrels, and smugglers, and bounty hunters and assorted other criminals.—
Christian Blauvelt,
IndieWire,
12 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Underworld.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/underworld. Accessed 17 Mar. 2026.
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