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.

Related Words

Relevance

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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Dissimilar Words

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 For anyone stuck in bean subscription purgatory, PANTRi is an excellent option. — Rebecca Firkser, Bon Appetit Magazine, 24 Sep. 2026 Discipline campaigns offer unambiguous carrots and sticks, including leniency for cadres who show the right attitude and professional purgatory, even exile, for those who do not. — Andrew Mertha, Foreign Affairs, 17 Sep. 2026 Is the morality fable at the end an allegory of purgatory or hell? — The Week Us, TheWeek, 15 Sep. 2026 Slow Horses fanatics will recognize her as one of the veteran MI5 operatives stuck in the agency’s version of purgatory, known as Slough House. — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 13 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for purgatory

Recent Examples of Synonyms for purgatory

Noun

Other passengers included André Breton, Victor Serge, and Claude Lévi-Strauss—all fleeing the inferno.

— Alex Ross, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
Four cars and two storage containers were damaged by the inferno, the fire department said.

— Dalia Faheid, CNN Money, 20 Sep. 2026

Definition of inferno

Noun

The minutes had passed so quickly for the rest of the world, but for the families waiting to learn whether their children were alive, the abrupt end of the gunfire wasn’t the end of their agony.

— Alaa Elassar, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2026
The daughters of burning witches were sometimes made to stand close to the pyre, being whipped by locals while watching their mothers die in agony.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of agony

Noun

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
The show revolved around Crockett and Tubbs, two undercover detectives infiltrating South Florida’s criminal underworld.

— Matt Grobar, Deadline, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of underworld

Noun

For their version, which follows a young teen boy (Bean Reid’s Sam) who works to find his missing brother in a town haunted by an evil crop curse, the answer was pumpkin guts.

— Abbey White, HollywoodReporter, 18 Oct. 2026
The money, which added up to many millions in today’s dollars, was a blessing and a curse.

— Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of curse

Noun

This dilemma is causing one hell of an identity crisis for our hero, thus throwing everything in his inner world out of whack.

— David Fear, Rolling Stone, 12 Oct. 2026
The series followed the Brannock family who moved into what was supposed to be their suburban dream home, and quickly became a living hell.

— Peter White, Deadline, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of hell

Noun

His ordeal would go on to become one of the most egregious examples of prosecutorial misconduct in the United States.

— Madeleine Baran, New Yorker, 9 Oct. 2026
That entire ordeal is presented in detail, a backstage drama in miniature that treats the boardroom soap opera as the last chance to keep Pandora’s box shut.

— David Fear, Rolling Stone, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of ordeal

Browse Nearby Words

purgatories

purgatory

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Cite this Entry

Style

“Purgatory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/purgatory. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of purgatory

noun

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