1
as in inferno
the place of punishment for the wicked after death
condemned to hell for their sins
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in nightmare
a situation or state that causes great suffering and unhappiness
picking cotton under the hot summer sun was hell
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in havoc
a state in which everything is out of order
all hell broke loose when the jury's verdict was announced
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hell
With the wrong family, whether for issues of fit or very real concerns of abuse, the au pair experience can be a living hell.
—
Madeleine Janz, People.com, 23 Apr. 2025
It’s said that during the festival, the gates of hell open and ghosts visit earth.
—Gabino Iglesias, New York Times, 26 Apr. 2025
According to the team, the existence of a hell ant in Brazil shows that the insects were already widely distributed around the world and diversified sometime early in their evolution.
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 24 Apr. 2025
That lends credence to the authors’ hypotheses that hell ants were widely distributed, as well as great travelers.
—Paul Smaglik, Discover Magazine, 24 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hell
Madeleine Janz, People.com, 23 Apr. 2025
It’s said that during the festival, the gates of hell open and ghosts visit earth.
—Gabino Iglesias, New York Times, 26 Apr. 2025
According to the team, the existence of a hell ant in Brazil shows that the insects were already widely distributed around the world and diversified sometime early in their evolution.
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 24 Apr. 2025
That lends credence to the authors’ hypotheses that hell ants were widely distributed, as well as great travelers.
—Paul Smaglik, Discover Magazine, 24 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hell
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hell
Noun
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Thursday that 18 suspects have been arrested for alleged arson amid the inferno, which has spread across more than 5,000 acres in the foothills of Jerusalem over the past two days.—
Tom O'Connor,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 May 2025
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With too little carbon dioxide, Earth can become a frozen wasteland, and with too much, a sweltering inferno.—
The Editors,
JSTOR Daily,
16 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Playing one-on-one with Kobe Bryant was a hooper’s dream while growing up, but that quickly turned into a nightmare for Bow Wow, who got shut out 10-0 when facing the Mamba Mentality.—
Michael Saponara,
Billboard,
1 May 2025
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For this series, Dhruv Khullar reports on the effects of the cancellation of a life-changing diabetes trial; Grace Byron writes about the bureaucratic nightmare of being trans in this moment; Charles Bethea covers the potential impacts of tariffs on the whiskey industry; and there’s more to come.—
David Remnick,
New Yorker,
30 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Emotional devastation lingers in L.A. fire zones March 9, 2025 Questions of how people can donate their own cookbook collections to the cause are already pouring in; Now Serving hopes to organize donation drives in the future, perhaps for an event in July, six months from the fires’ havoc.—
Stephanie Breijo,
Los Angeles Times,
2 May 2025
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The film rocketed back in time to show the havoc the creature wreaked on a group of Native Americans in the Great Plains during the 18th century.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
24 Apr. 2025
Noun
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The only temporary catharsis was blasting golf balls into the abyss.—
Jordan Kaye,
Charlotte Observer,
11 Apr. 2025
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The edgy status quo will worsen as continuing natural disasters, government layoffs, and tariff wars push more working families toward the precipice where stability drops into the abyss.—
Jeff Hobbs,
Time,
10 Apr. 2025
Noun
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In video of the attack released by police at the time, she can be heard screaming in agony.—
Roni Jacobson,
New York Daily News,
9 May 2025
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Dropping dramatically to the floor, Busquets writhed in agony and Motta was duly sent off.—
Conor O'Neill,
New York Times,
29 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Another recent video on her page revealed this wasn't the last time her cat used a ball of yarn to cause a mess.—
Liz O'Connell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 May 2025
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Meanwhile, Charlie consults with Paige from set dec, who confirms that the team cleaned up the grisly mess at the house earlier that day.—
Louis Peitzman,
Vulture,
8 May 2025
Noun
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Appropriately for a fantasy of perdition suited to this nihilistic century, the logic of eternal punishment remains opaque.—
Elisa Gonzalez,
The New Yorker,
3 Feb. 2025
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The perdition market did not respond to Newsweek's request for comment asking if an announcement like FanDuel's would follow.—
Michael Gfoeller And David H. Rundell,
Newsweek,
15 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Some of his misery has resulted from brilliant deflections or bad bounces off of his defencemen, but Hellebuyck is responsible for enough of his problems to earn the unwanted attention.—
Murat Ates,
New York Times,
29 Apr. 2025
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Strangling the dog to put it out of its misery could be seen as both an act of cruelty and an act of generosity, and that contradiction is interesting.—
Rafa Sales Ross,
Variety,
25 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hell.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hell. Accessed 15 May. 2025.
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