as in underworld
a social sphere that exists outside of the mainstream
the half-world of tattoo addicts who regard the body embellishments not merely as fashion statements but as works of art and fundamental expressions of personal identity
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Recent Examples of half-world
On a sultry Monday night a half-world away from where her problems began, the 23-year-old earned a gold medal at world championships in the biggest 100-meter race this side of the Olympics.
—
CBS News, 22 Aug. 2023
Being in that half-world of reality and filming was genuinely terrifying.
—Simon Thompson, Forbes, 6 May 2023
CBS News, 22 Aug. 2023
Being in that half-world of reality and filming was genuinely terrifying.
—Simon Thompson, Forbes, 6 May 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for half-world
underworld
Noun
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With the exception of one strange, teasingly surreal scene, which conjures the feel of a yakuza thriller set somewhere between a criminal underworld and a metaphysical overworld, Kurosawa sidesteps any hint of the supernatural.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
17 July 2025
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But the story tells how Sedna came to rule over the Inuit underworld.—
Kim Hjelmgaard,
USA Today,
6 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Half-world.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/half-world. Accessed 21 Aug. 2025.
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