hells

noun

plural of hell
1
as in nightmares
a situation or state that causes great suffering and unhappiness picking cotton under the hot summer sun was hell

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in messes
a state in which everything is out of order all hell broke loose when the jury's verdict was announced

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 hells An episode of septicemia, with its hells and paradises, its nightmares and hallucinations, transforms Borges into a story writer. — 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 Smith stays largely mum on the news of the day, be that Kirk’s killing, or ICE raids, or whatever hells await in the coming weeks. — Sam Kestenbaum, Vulture, 2 Jan. 2026 The protagonist's youth doesn't defang the story, as Silent Hill f wastes no time thrusting Hinako and her friends into their personal hells. — Zackery Cuevas, PC Magazine, 23 Sep. 2025 All’s well that metal-as-hells well. — Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 27 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hells
  1. nightmares
  2. messes
  3. horrors
  4. confusions
  5. agonies
  6. jumbles
  7. miseries
  8. havoc
Noun
  • Its heroine, Calypso, wakes up each day to find her dreams – or nightmares – become part of her real life.
    — Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 3 Sep. 2026
  • In outline, these are elegant Bond-villain machines for faceless, leaderless, pervasive espionage and assassination, the stuff of paranoid nightmares and stochastic violence.
    — Finn Brunton, Harpers Magazine, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of nightmares
Noun
  • The Australian singer-songwriter seeks to strike a balance between life’s contradictions, desires and messes through raw lyrics, deceptively relaxed jangle rock and woozy folk-pop.
    — Bob Gendron, Chicago Tribune, 31 Aug. 2026
  • To prevent excessive messes in your microwave, cover your food with a paper towel or a microwave-safe splatter guard.
    — Kate Van Pelt, The Spruce, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of messes
Noun
  • Arthur Miller’s enduring impact rivals Shakespeare’s, with a consistently socially conscious body of work that challenged power structures and society’s complicity during his time and still reaches modern audiences with the horrors of today.
    — Greg Evans, Deadline, 29 Aug. 2026
  • But in between the jump scares and supernatural horrors is a story of motherhood and confronting the past.
    — Tanya Fedak, Variety, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of horrors
Noun
  • Before the Lost Weekend, John and Yoko had their New York Year — turning their personal confusions into beautifully vivid moments of rage and pain.
    — Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 14 Oct. 2025
Definition of confusions
Noun
  • Sadly, in discouraging all the phantom agonies, FIFA inadvertently seems to have done away with the equally farcical phenomenon that is Magic Spray®.
    — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 17 July 2026
  • The reticence of Cartland’s heroes belies agonies of loneliness.
    — Simon Perry, PEOPLE, 18 June 2026
Definition of agonies
Noun
  • Arches and natural bridges sweep like buttresses from jumbles of rock, giving this landscape a mystical, cathedral-like quality.
    — Madison Chapman, Outside, 25 Mar. 2026
  • Macaroons are chewy jumbles of coconut bound together with egg whites and sweetened condensed milk.
    — Lynda Balslev, Mercury News, 10 Feb. 2026
Definition of jumbles
Noun
  • Some residents said hope is elusive given the island’s litany of miseries – from natural disasters to a bankrupt government to a financial control board that manages funding for infrastructure.
    — Isabel Rosales, CNN Money, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Cyclospora, an intestinal parasite, has sickened thousands of people and hospitalized hundreds with explosive diarrhea, painful cramping, or other gastrointestinal miseries.
    — Emily Kay Votruba, EverydayHealth.com, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of miseries
Noun
  • Although not a direct hit, Lala dumped nearly 3 feet of rain on the Big Island, bringing widespread havoc.
    — Doyle Rice, USA Today, 1 Sep. 2026
  • In the movie, a group of teens accidentally release a bunch of monsters from Stine’s book collection, creating complete havoc and plenty of great family-friendly frights.
    — Keith Langston, PEOPLE, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of havoc

Browse Nearby Words

hell-raising
hells
helm
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Cite this Entry

“Hells.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hells. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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