as in dump
a dirty or messy place
his first apartment was a hellhole in an unsafe neighborhood
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hellhole
Far from being the hellholes that Trump and his minions constantly depict, cities such as New York and Boston and Seattle are already desirable places to live—witness their housing pressures.
—
Bill McKibben, New Yorker, 23 Sep. 2025
Who wants to work to separate family members from each other or put people in a hellhole in the Everglades?
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 4 Aug. 2025
The place where Dante cast endless sinners, upside down in hellholes of their own carving, or in the tangled forest of suicides, or with the fratricides in the ninth circle, all of them eternally condemned.
—Literary Hub, 11 June 2025
She was immediately put on the next plane back to her Third World hellhole.
—Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 19 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hellhole
Bill McKibben, New Yorker, 23 Sep. 2025
Who wants to work to separate family members from each other or put people in a hellhole in the Everglades?
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 4 Aug. 2025
The place where Dante cast endless sinners, upside down in hellholes of their own carving, or in the tangled forest of suicides, or with the fratricides in the ninth circle, all of them eternally condemned.
—Literary Hub, 11 June 2025
She was immediately put on the next plane back to her Third World hellhole.
—Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 19 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hellhole
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hellhole
Noun
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Clairo kicked off the week with an Instagram photo dump that featured pictures from what looks to be like studio sessions, indicating that the singer may be getting ready to drop her fourth album.—
Maya Georgi,
Rolling Stone,
12 Mar. 2026
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On Instagram, Bieber posted a photo dump from her trip to Japan for Justin’s birthday, and besides her vintage Issey Miyake skirt suit moment, every look felt attainable.—
Kaitlin Clapinski,
InStyle,
11 Mar. 2026
Noun
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But amid the mess of UCLA’s 72-59 win over 14th-seeded Rutgers was a slippery star point guard in the middle of one of his masterworks, not only lifting the Bruins to victory but passing and rebounding and defending his way into the Big Ten tournament record books.—
Ryan Kartje,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Mar. 2026
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However, that kind of financially freewheeling behavior has placed the Dolphins in their present cap hell, dwelling in an accounting mess the franchise will spend the next season pinching pennies for, forced to navigate their way out of.—
Omar Kelly,
Miami Herald,
12 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Acuña grounded to the shortstop hole and beat Antonacci’s throw from the outfield grass as pinch-runner Andrés Giménez scored.—
Dallas Morning News,
Dallas Morning News,
17 Mar. 2026
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Photographs shown to jurors depicted bullet holes in the exterior walls of the residence and inside the bedroom where Moïse was killed.—
Jacqueline Charles,
Miami Herald,
17 Mar. 2026
Noun
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De Wet claims Olivier then ordered him to dispose of their bodies in a pigsty — an act prosecutors believe was meant to destroy evidence.—
Christina Coulter,
People.com,
7 Aug. 2025
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Regard your property as an investment in a pigsty, and visitors will treat it thus.—
Miami Herald Archives,
Miami Herald,
3 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Rainn Wilson, the actor who portrayed him, has a pigpen.—
Rachel Davies,
Architectural Digest,
3 Mar. 2026
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If the Hogs couldn’t win the day in their pigpen, with Bryce Young sidelined since the second quarter with a sprained shoulder, after scoring 23 straight points in the midst of a rare, extended Alabama meltdown, will this ridiculous streak ever end?—
Kevin Scarbinsky | Special to AL.com,
al,
2 Oct. 2022
Noun
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In 1981, he was elected mayor, if not quite the Zohran Mamdani of the Reagan revolution (Mamdani won by two hundred thousand votes, not ten), then at least a sty in the Gipper’s eye.—
Jill Lepore,
New Yorker,
19 Jan. 2026
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In eye care, HOCl is used to help with dry eyes, sties, and conditions like blepharitis and meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD).—
Boutayna Chokrane,
Wired News,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hellhole.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hellhole. Accessed 19 Mar. 2026.
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