hell Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun any place of pain and turmoil;
    the pits; hellhole; snake pit; hell on earth; inferno.
    • the hell of battle
    • the inferno of the engine room
    • when you're alone Christmas is the pits
  2. noun a cause of difficulty and suffering
    blaze.
    • war is hell
    • go to blazes
  3. noun (Christianity) the abode of Satan and the forces of evil; where sinners suffer eternal punishment
    infernal region; perdition; nether region; Inferno; pit.
    • Hurl'd headlong...To bottomless perdition, there to dwell"- John Milton
    • a demon from the depths of the pit
    • Hell is paved with good intentions"-Dr. Johnson
  4. noun (religion) the world of the dead
    infernal region; underworld; Hades; netherworld; Scheol.
    • No one goes to Hades with all his immense wealth"-Theognis
  5. noun violent and excited activity
    sin.
    • they began to fight like sin
  6. noun noisy and unrestrained mischief
    blaze.
    • raising blazes

WordNet


Hell noun
Etymology
AS. hell; akin to D. hel, OHG. hella, G. hölle, Icel. hal, Sw. helfvete, Dan. helvede, Goth. halja, and to AS. helan to conceal. . Cf. Hele, v. t., Conceal, Cell, Helmet, Hole, Occult.
Definitions
  1. The place of the dead, or of souls after death; the grave; -- called in Hebrew sheol, and by the Greeks hades.
    He descended into hell. Book of Common Prayer.
    Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell. Ps. xvi. 10.
  2. The place or state of punishment for the wicked after death; the abode of evil spirits. Hence, any mental torment; anguish. "Within him hell." Milton.
    It is a knell That summons thee to heaven or to hell. Shak.
  3. A place where outcast persons or things are gathered; as: (a) A dungeon or prison; also, in certain running games, a place to which those who are caught are carried for detention. (b) A gambling house. "A convenient little gambling hell for those who had grown reckless." W. Black. (c) A place into which a tailor throws his shreds, or a printer his broken type. Hudibras.
Hell transitive verb
Definitions
  1. To overwhelm. Obs. Spenser.

Webster 1913