damnation

noun

dam·​na·​tion dam-ˈnā-shən How to pronounce damnation (audio)
: the act of damning : the state of being damned

Examples of damnation in a Sentence

The minister spoke about death and damnation.
Recent Examples on the Web The divergent outcomes of both teams provided the biggest damnation of the Padres, organizationally. Bryce Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 30 Sep. 2023 Only on his deathbed did the local parish priest finally yield to familial pleas, administering the last rites to avert eternal damnation. Christopher Knight, Los Angeles Times, 20 Sep. 2023 This adventure story rides the line between sci-fi and fantasy, following a violin prodigy who has made a deal with the devil to evade damnation. USA TODAY, 11 Aug. 2023 Berry’s peers had a sense of sin and damnation in common, to the degree that their music might be taken for a form of speaking in tongues. Matthew Gavin Frank, Harper's Magazine, 4 May 2023 But history shows no television strategy can survive eternal ratings damnation. Jim Rutenberg, New York Times, 8 June 2023 Unitarians may have rejected the fire-breathing Calvinist notion of original sin, predestination, and damnation in favor of a more rational and gentler view of human nature, but the transcendentalists went further: all human inspiration was divine, all nature a miracle. Brenda Wineapple, The New York Review of Books, 8 Apr. 2021 That means a drastic shift to policies that actually help average citizens, as well as the environment — much like the original Great Depression-era New Deal, a comparison whose respective embrace and damnation neatly demarcates one essential U.S. party divide these days. Dennis Harvey, Variety, 23 Jan. 2022 Shapiro’s strategy is praise by faint damnation. Robert Kuttner, The New York Review of Books, 21 July 2022 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'damnation.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of damnation was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near damnation

Cite this Entry

“Damnation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/damnation. Accessed 9 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

damnation

noun
dam·​na·​tion dam-ˈnā-shən How to pronounce damnation (audio)
1
: the act of damning
2
: the state of being damned
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!