pandemonium

noun

pan·​de·​mo·​ni·​um ˌpan-də-ˈmō-nē-əm How to pronounce pandemonium (audio)
1
: a wild uproar (as because of anger or excitement in a crowd of people)
Pandemonium erupted in the courtroom when the verdict was announced.
The game is stopped on account of pandemonium: players and spectators are screaming and staggering around the court …Darcy Frey
also : a chaotic situation
It is obvious that pandemonium would exist at most uncontrolled airports if every pilot did not conscientiously follow the traffic pattern. Joseph W. Benkert
2
capitalized : the capital of Hell in Milton's Paradise Lost
3
capitalized : the infernal regions : hell
the demons of Pandemonium

Did you know?

When John Milton needed a name for the gathering place of all demons for Paradise Lost, he turned to the classics as any sensible 17th-century writer would. Pandæmonium, as the capital of Hell is known in the epic poem, combines the Greek prefix pan-, meaning “all,” with the Late Latin daemonium, meaning “evil spirit.” (Daemonium itself traces back to the far more innocuous Greek word daímōn, meaning “spirit” or “divine power.”) Over time, Pandæmonium (or Pandemonium) came to designate all of hell and was used as well for earthbound dens of wickedness and sin. By the late-18th century, the word implied a place or state of confusion or uproar, and from there, it didn’t take long for pandemonium to become associated with states of utter disorder and wildness.

Examples of pandemonium in a Sentence

Christmas morning at our house is always marked by pandemonium a surrealist painting in which all the torments of Pandemonium are vividly depicted
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The pandemonium erupted at Coney Island Beach on the sand at around 6:30 p.m. when a fight broke out leading to multiple people being taken into custody, police told Fox News Digital. Michael Dorgan, FOXNews.com, 24 June 2025 Then, in the bottom of the inning, Kennedy throws a pitch near Greinke’s head, and pandemonium breaks out, with both benches and bullpens emptying again, and players and even coaches going at each other. Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 11 June 2025 The pandemonium did not end there, as Manning ended up storming out for revenge. Kevin McCormick, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 June 2025 As the campaign intensifies, so does the pandemonium of the pandemic era with news coverage and social media posts stoking the flames of right-wing conspiracy, rising racial reckoning and protests against police brutality. Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 17 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for pandemonium

Word History

Etymology

pan- + Late Latin daemonium "evil spirit," borrowed from Greek daimónion "evil spirit," earlier "divine power, inferior divine being," derivative of daímōn "divinity, divine power, individual destiny" (with -ium probably to be read as Latin -ium or Greek -eion, suffixes of place) — more at demon

First Known Use

1667, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of pandemonium was in 1667

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Cite this Entry

“Pandemonium.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pandemonium. Accessed 9 Jul. 2025.

Kids Definition

pandemonium

noun
pan·​de·​mo·​ni·​um
ˌpan-də-ˈmō-nē-əm
: a wild uproar : tumult
Etymology

from Pandemonium, name of the place of demons in Paradise Lost by John Milton, from Greek pan- "all, every, completely" and Greek daimon "evil spirit, demon"

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