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hell

hell

3.7
A very painful or difficult experience
  • noun
  • /hɛl/
  • Informal
translation icon : infierno
  • The first year with your second child is a special kind of hell.
  • a living hell

Well, that would be hell for them, right?

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Examples

  • You scared the hell out of me!

  • Dealing with the aftermath of the accident was pure hell for her and her family.

  • Well, that would be hell for them, right?

  • Within seconds, all hell breaks loose.

  • As usual, I'm mad as hell with no one to talk to about it.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • I know you'd make my life hell if I did.

  • You're doing one hell of a good job.

  • After losing his job, Mark felt like he was going through hell every day.

  • The intense training for the marathon was a hell of an experience, pushing him to his limits.

Synonyms

suffering
vshell
636 2.8

Pain and trouble that a person feels in the body or mind

is a hard or painful situation that creates that state
misery
vshell
310 2.8

A feeling of great unhappiness and suffering

is a difficult experience causing pain rather than only unhappiness
torture
vshell
  • Offensive
137 7.2

Very strong mental or physical pain that is hard to bear

is an extremely difficult experience that is not necessarily inflicted by others
ordeal
vshell
137 4.8

A difficult, unpleasant experience that lasts a long time

is any extreme difficulty and not only those that take long
agony
vshell
135 3.9

A very strong physical or mental pain

is a painful or difficult situation rather than the inner intense pain
torment
vshell
  • NSFW
70 5.6

Great physical or mental pain someone feels

is a situation that is extremely difficult rather than the suffering itself
hellhole
vshell
  • Informal
51 7.9

A very dirty, unpleasant, and dangerous place

is a difficult experience or situation rather than only a dirty place
purgatory
vshell
14 9.0

A temporary state of painful waiting before things get better

is the general idea without implying temporary suffering or later relief
hell on earth
vshell
  • Informal
9 6.8

A place or situation that causes great suffering and pain

is the general idea of an extremely difficult painful experience
inferno
vshell
  • Literature
7 8.2

A situation of great danger and destruction, like war or a big fire

is the same extreme suffering idea but without the fiery image
the pits
vshell
  • Informal
5 8.8

A very bad situation that makes you feel unhappy

is the broad notion of an extremely hard or painful situation not place
snake pit
vshell
  • Informal
3 7.3

An unpleasant, chaotic place where people act badly toward each other

is focused on severe suffering and hardship rather than hostility or chaos
fresh hell
vshell
  • Informal
1 9.9

A new, very difficult problem that comes after other troubles

is any extremely difficult situation, not only new or recurring troubles

Antonyms

190 1.0

A feeling of physical ease and being free from pain

1 5.9

To feel great happiness and peace quietly

Idioms

347 8.9

An angry or surprised question showing you do not believe something

in hell
  • Informal
179 8.4

To feel great pain or trouble and be very unhappy

like hell
  • NSFW
75 7.9

Happening very quickly, with great effort or very strongly

to burn in hell
  • Offensive
38 9.6

Say that you want someone to suffer forever after they die

37 8.1

To scold someone very strongly for something they did

hell-bent
  • Informal
32 7.5

Extremely determined to do something no matter the danger or cost

28 9.0

A very impressive or powerful example of something

like hell
  • NSFW
26 9.8

Said to show that you do not believe or accept something

26 8.9

Angrily tell someone to go away and never come back

to rot in hell
  • Offensive
19 9.7

To wish that someone suffers and is punished after they die

hell to pay
  • Informal
19 8.6

Serious trouble or punishment someone gets for something they did

16 8.1

A sudden time of chaos and confusion that spreads quickly

15 7.9

Behave loudly and angrily to cause trouble

To have a very hard and painful time in life

fucking hell
  • Offensive
14 9.9

A strong rude shout people use when they feel very angry or shocked

hell on earth
  • Informal
9 6.8

A place or situation that causes great suffering and pain

hot as hell
  • Informal
9 7.5

Very hot in a way that feels uncomfortable

To become much worse very quickly and out of control

5 8.3

No matter what happens or how difficult it is

5 9.1

To do something for no particular reason, just for fun

4 8.4

To be very sick and miserable

3 8.4

Says that something will be done no matter what problems happen

2 8.4

A very large, messy situation that is hard to fix

To have very hard times and still survive

hell on wheels
  • Informal
1 8.8

A person or thing that is very active, hard to control and often aggressive

1 9.5

For a very long time, often to say something will never happen

1 7.9

A sudden time when many people lose control and chaos starts

hell-for-leather
  • Informal
1 9.0

As fast as possible

cold day in Hell
  • Informal
9.4

An event that is very unlikely to happen

9.5

In a very energetic and excited way

To take a very long time and cause a lot of trouble

Very bad damage that comes from the sky, like bombs or storms

hell mend him
  • Offensive
9.9

Showing no sympathy when someone suffers from their own choices

To take actions that seem good but cause bad results

the hell you say
  • Informal
9.9

A strong spoken reaction showing surprise and disbelief

snowball in hell
  • Informal
9.4

An almost impossible chance of happening

Compounds

hell-raising
  • Informal
2 8.4

Noisy, wild actions that cause trouble or excitement

fresh hell
  • Informal
1 9.9

A new, very difficult problem that comes after other troubles

callback hell
  • Jargon
9.6

A situation where too many nested callbacks make code hard to read and change

gambling hell
  • Archaic
8.6

A place where people bet money, often illegal and full of trouble

hell dust
  • NSFW
9.9

A slang word for the illegal drug heroin

hell-rooster
  • Offensive
9.9

A person who fights or argues in a very angry way

hell-kite
  • Offensive
9.9

A fierce, violent person who fights without mercy

How Bad

hell
  • Informal
3.7
hardship
128 3.4
nightmare
404 1.5
difficulty
651 2.4
inconvenience
107 4.3

Surface Forms

hell singular
hells plural

Etymology

Hell is used for a very bad or painful time because the old idea of hell was a place of punishment and suffering. So people say something is 'like hell' or a 'living hell' when they want to show it is extremely awful.