PURGATORY Synonyms: 65 Similar and Opposite Words

purgatory

noun

Definition of purgatory

as in inferno

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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Dissimilar Words

as in nightmare

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

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.

Recent Examples of purgatory Yet the Cougars and Beavers have existed in a sort of purgatory for the past two years. — Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 22 Oct. 2026 It ping-ponged between financial and regulatory purgatories that most commentators have attributed to endless permitting delays. — Sara Herschander, Vox, 22 Oct. 2026 His visits to his son’s tomb are accompanied by ghosts stuck in the bardo, or purgatory, who tell their own life stories and encourage both Willie and the President to move on. — Caitlin Huston, HollywoodReporter, 20 Oct. 2026 The band hovers in a razor-thin lacuna between heaven and hell, between ascension and purgatory, on the verge of going either way. — Grayson Haver Currin, Pitchfork, 15 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for purgatory

Recent Examples of Synonyms for purgatory

Noun

Unsuspecting Americans look up in shock and horror as a massive inferno erupts and engulfs them.

— James Grebey, Time, 3 Nov. 2026
Real estate developer Rick Caruso, who was defeated by Bass in 2022 and had family members lose homes in the inferno, blasted Bass over her absence and the city’s struggle to combat the blaze.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 1 Nov. 2026

Definition of inferno

Noun

Taking the McDavid minutes away gives us the purest form of agony these defencemen are experiencing at this time.

— Allan Mitchell, New York Times, 28 Oct. 2026
The prisoner in question, Doug Korpi, had also admitted that his agony was an act to journalist Ben Blum, who included the revelation in a broader takedown of the experiment published in 2018.

— Jacopo Prisco, CNN Money, 21 Oct. 2026

Definition of agony

Noun

When a routine theft goes wrong and Viktor is badly injured, Malina strikes a desperate deal with a corrupt doctor, forcing them into a dangerous journey through Macedonia’s underworld.

— Zac Ntim, Deadline, 26 Oct. 2026
Dementia related to untreated syphilis left him incapable of resuming his position atop the country’s criminal underworld.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of underworld

Noun

Lakshmana faces a difficult decision—whether to break Rama’s command or to allow the sage to unleash his curse.

— Tamanna Nangia, Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Oct. 2026
Its quoting is generally accompanied by a Nicholson impression of dubious quality, which is both a curse and an opportunity for director Michael Arden’s expansive new production and its current star, Bradley Whitford.

— Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of curse

Noun

His second, a collaboration with the Times puzzle editor Tracy Bennett, was a hefty Sunday puzzle rife with just-for-the-hell-of-it wordplay.

— New York Times, New York Times, 3 Nov. 2026
But hell hath no fury like a Latino voter scorned and all this intimidation, in addition to a lack of follow-through on promises by Republican lawmakers since 2024, might have a boomerang effect by agitating Latinos into action.

— Carlos De Loera, Los Angeles Times, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of hell

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purgatories

purgatory

purge

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Style

“Purgatory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/purgatory. Accessed 5 Nov. 2026.

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Synonyms of purgatory

noun

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