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purgatories

noun

plural of purgatory
1
as in infernos
a temporary place or state in which the souls of people who die make amends for their sins It was a summer job that felt like purgatory to the teen.

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2
as in nightmares
a place or state of temporary suffering We found ourselves trapped in the purgatory of a rush-hour traffic jam.

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for purgatories
  1. infernos
  2. nightmares
  3. hells
  4. curses
  5. underworlds
  6. horrors
  7. abysses
  8. ordeals
Noun
  • The soaring temperatures have caused raging infernos across southern France and Spain, with European wildfires burning through 56% more land than in prior years.
    — Oliver Balch, Fortune, 27 July 2026
  • From a military perspective though, this strike, and the infernos which have engulfed other Wildberries facilities, have some important lessons for the rest of the world.
    — David Hambling, Forbes.com, 23 July 2026
Definition of infernos
Noun
  • One of those nightmares centers on whether the execution team will be able to establish an IV line.
    — Christina Coulter, PEOPLE, 25 Sep. 2026
  • With every whimper, sigh, howl, bark and head tilt, these dogs create an empathetic portrayal of a highly intelligent creature that has been through battle and has the scars (and nightmares) to prove it.
    — Katie Walsh, Los Angeles Times, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of nightmares
Noun
  • An episode of septicemia, with its hells and paradises, its nightmares and hallucinations, transforms Borges into a story writer.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 26 Aug. 2026
  • The Avici hell is the lowest and most terrible level of the eight hot hells of Buddhism, where those who’ve committed serious crimes (like parricide) must face constant suffering.
    — Regina Kim, Forbes.com, 1 June 2026
Definition of hells
Noun
  • Vieira said the show offers another opportunity for people to discover Rockport beyond the fictional curses portrayed in the series.
    — Aaron Parseghian, CBS News, 15 Sep. 2026
  • But repression isn’t a good plan when generations-long curses run in the bloodline, because Sally’s daughter Kylie (Joey King), now a college student, has gone and fallen in love behind her mother’s back.
    — Katie Walsh, Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of curses
Noun
  • Robert, the son of a more-like-a-brother cousin of Carney’s, disappears, and Carney sets out to find him, navigating the dual underworlds of Harlem crime and Queens politics.
    — David Hajdu, The Atlantic, 16 July 2026
  • When the gang comes to the attention of Major Chester Campbell, a DCI in the Royal Irish Constabulary, the wheels are set in motion for adventures through the dangerous underworlds of early 20th-century Britain.
    — Connor Sturges, Condé Nast Traveler, 18 Mar. 2026
Definition of underworlds
Noun
  • Rebecca and Verity, which stars Johnson, are also about a new, naïve lover entering the home of a bad man with a wife hidden in his house of horrors.
    — Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Life goes on, in all its quirks and intimacies and frivolities, no matter what horrors might lurk on the horizon.
    — Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of horrors
Noun
  • Jean-Pierre is an artifact of an age that looks recent on paper but feels prehistoric in practice—the age of pantsuits, the word ’empowerment,’ the musical Hamilton, the cheap therapeutic entreaties to ‘work on yourself’ and ‘lean in’ to various corporate abysses.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 17 Dec. 2025
  • On the other side of the country, Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport, a longtime reader favorite, is a warm alternative to sterile airport abysses.
    — Hannah Towey, Condé Nast Traveler, 4 Oct. 2024
Definition of abysses
Noun
  • The two have remained united throughout the murder investigation and subsequent legal ordeals regarding Kohberger.
    — Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Through their fantastical ordeals, the X-Men illustrate qualities that inspire viewers, young and old.
    — Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 10 July 2026
Definition of ordeals
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.

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Cite this Entry

“Purgatories.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/purgatories. Accessed 30 Sep. 2026.

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