1
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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2
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
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Recent Examples of purgatory
However, without first thinking about how AI can enable extraordinary outcomes through becoming good at something, being present and reassessing goals, many companies will unintentionally find themselves in an AI purgatory of their own making.
—
Michael Hicks, Forbes.com, 7 May 2025
Another example of spin purgatory is fellow Club name Honeywell .
—Morgan Chittum, CNBC, 1 May 2025
After former Representatives Matt Gaetz and Michael Waltz of Florida both resigned to pursue positions in the Trump administration, Ms. Stefanik was stuck in a sort of purgatory.
—Annie Karni, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2025
The internal affairs complaint that follows will likely join thousands of others in administrative purgatory.
—Natasha Dartigue, Baltimore Sun, 23 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for purgatory
Michael Hicks, Forbes.com, 7 May 2025
Another example of spin purgatory is fellow Club name Honeywell .
—Morgan Chittum, CNBC, 1 May 2025
After former Representatives Matt Gaetz and Michael Waltz of Florida both resigned to pursue positions in the Trump administration, Ms. Stefanik was stuck in a sort of purgatory.
—Annie Karni, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2025
The internal affairs complaint that follows will likely join thousands of others in administrative purgatory.
—Natasha Dartigue, Baltimore Sun, 23 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for purgatory
Recent Examples of Synonyms for purgatory
Noun
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Nearly half a year since the infernos swept through their neighborhoods, thousands of people remain displaced – those like Mr. Quiroz’s mother, who lost homes, and those like Mr. Quiroz and his family, whose homes still stand.—
Melanie Stetson Freeman,
Christian Science Monitor,
20 June 2025
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But Israel has also widened the scope of its strikes to hit economic targets, turning vital parts of Iran’s fossil fuel infrastructure into infernos.—
Nabih Bulos,
Los Angeles Times,
15 June 2025
Noun
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But highly damaged Mark, whose upbringing was evidently a nightmare of abuse, has found salvation, or at least escape: He’s ordained himself a servant of the Lord, holding improvisational services in the prison chapel to a paltry flock.—
Dennis Harvey,
Variety,
20 June 2025
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Baum introduced his book to young readers as ‘a modernized fairy tale, in which the wonderment and joy are retained and the heartaches and nightmares are left out’.—
Hazel Gaynor
June 18,
Literary Hub,
18 June 2025
Noun
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The twin netherworlds—named after the mythical Greek god of the underworld and the pilot who shuttled souls across the river Styx—circle more than five billion kilometers distant from the sun, along an orbit that Stern’s Pluto expedition took nine years to reach.—
Kevin Holden Platt,
Forbes.com,
22 June 2025
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The other two-thirds are on a scale of anxiously hopeful to beyond desperate -- an amorphous netherworld of doubt that, yes, includes the Miami Dolphins with Tua Tagovailoa, or should.—
Greg Cote,
Miami Herald,
3 Apr. 2025
Noun
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But playing with an already-strained right calf, the Oshkosh, Wis., native stepped awkwardly towards the basket and crumbled to the court in agony when his leg appeared to pop.—
Sean Neumann,
People.com,
24 June 2025
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Finding alternatives that would end this agony would be one of American science’s most important achievements.—
Rachel Fobar,
Vox,
14 May 2025
Noun
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The film is a genre-bending, neo-noir and psychological drama set in the ’90s following a former baseball player brought into a criminal underworld.—
Brian Welk,
IndieWire,
13 June 2025
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Ever since Homer's The Odyssey, storytellers have been fascinated with traveling beneath the surface of the Earth into the mysterious underworld.—
David Szondy
June 08,
New Atlas,
8 June 2025
Noun
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Because perhaps heartbreak is not only a curse, but also a language.—
Anna Marie de la Fuente,
Variety,
20 June 2025
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His thought that autism is a curse that destroys families IS the tragedy.—
Laura Tillman,
Hartford Courant,
16 June 2025
Noun
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There’s more pressing current affairs to attend to right now, and hell, there’s a new Lorde album to bop to.—
Savannah Salazar,
Vulture,
27 June 2025
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Season two saw Valerie cast in an HBO project about the sitcom writer who made her life hell in season one, earning widespread acclaim professionally even as her personal life was falling apart.—
Rick Porter,
HollywoodReporter,
27 June 2025
Noun
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Thankfully, Midas is now fully recovered from his gassy ordeal, and is back to his usual self, running around the house and enjoying life.—
Alice Gibbs,
MSNBC Newsweek,
23 June 2025
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Then, two weeks into my pre-op ordeal, a teenaged redhead came into my room.—
Noor Hassan,
Rolling Stone,
21 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Purgatory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/purgatory. Accessed 4 Jul. 2025.
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