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Of all the inhabitants of the inferno, none but Lucifer knows that hell is hell, and the secret function of purgatory is to make of heaven an effective reality.
Arnold Bennett

Meaning of "purgatory" in the English dictionary

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DICTIONARY
section

ETYMOLOGY OF THE WORD PURGATORY

From Old French purgatoire, from Medieval Latin pūrgātōrium, literally: place of cleansing, from Latin pūrgāre to purge.
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Etymology is the study of the origin of words and their changes in structure and significance.
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PRONUNCIATION OF PURGATORY

purgatory  [ˈpɜːɡətərɪ] play
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GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF PURGATORY

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation
Purgatory is a noun.
A noun is a type of word the meaning of which determines reality. Nouns provide the names for all things: people, objects, sensations, feelings, etc.

WHAT DOES PURGATORY MEAN IN ENGLISH?

purgatory

Purgatory

Purgatory, according to Catholic Church doctrine, is an intermediary state after physical death in which those destined for heaven "undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven". Only those who die in the state of grace but have not in life reached a sufficient level of holiness can be in Purgatory, and therefore no one in Purgatory will remain forever in that state or go to hell. This theological notion has ancient roots and is well-attested in early Christian literature, but the poetic conception of Purgatory as a geographically existing place is largely the creation of medieval Christian piety and imagination. The notion of Purgatory is associated particularly with the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church; Anglicans of the Anglo-Catholic tradition generally also hold to the belief, along with many Lutherans of High Church Lutheranism. Eastern Orthodox Churches believe in the possibility of a change of situation for the souls of the dead through the prayers of the living and the offering of the Divine Liturgy, and many Orthodox, especially among ascetics, hope and pray for a general apocatastasis.

Definition of purgatory in the English dictionary

The definition of purgatory in the dictionary is a state or place in which the souls of those who have died in a state of grace are believed to undergo a limited amount of suffering to expiate their venial sins and become purified of the remaining effects of mortal sin. Other definition of purgatory is a place or condition of suffering or torment, esp one that is temporary.

WORDS THAT RHYME WITH PURGATORY


compurgatory
kəmˈpɜːɡətərɪ
defamatory
dɪˈfæmətərɪ
derogatory
dɪˈrɒɡətərɪ
dietary
ˈdaɪətərɪ
discriminatory
dɪˈskrɪmɪnətərɪ
disobligatory
ˌdɪsəˈblɪɡətərɪ
expurgatory
ɛksˈpɜːɡətərɪ
inflammatory
ɪnˈflæmətərɪ
interrogatory
ˌɪntəˈrɒɡətərɪ
investigatory
ɪnˈvɛstɪɡətərɪ
laboratory
ləˈbɒrətərɪ
legatary
ˈlɛɡətərɪ
mandatory
ˈmændətərɪ
negatory
ˈneɡətərɪ
nugatory
ˈnjuːɡətərɪ
objurgatory
ɒbˈdʒɜːɡətərɪ
obligatory
ɒˈblɪɡətərɪ
respiratory
ˈrɛspərətərɪ
rogatory
ˈrɒɡətərɪ
supererogatory
ˌsuːpərɛˈrɒɡətərɪ

WORDS THAT BEGIN LIKE PURGATORY

purfle
purfler
purfling
purfly
purgation
purgative
purgatively
purgatorial
purgatorially
purgatorian
purge
purgeable
purger
Puri
purification
Purification of the Virgin Mary
purificative
purificator
purificatory
purified

WORDS THAT END LIKE PURGATORY

ambulatory
anti-inflammatory
celebratory
circulatory
compensatory
conservatory
directory
explanatory
exploratory
lavatory
migratory
modulatory
oscillatory
participatory
predatory
preparatory
regulatory
research laboratory
self-explanatory
separatory
signatory

Synonyms and antonyms of purgatory in the English dictionary of synonyms

SYNONYMS

SYNONYMS OF «PURGATORY»

The following words have a similar or identical meaning as «purgatory» and belong to the same grammatical category.
synonyms of purgatory

Translation of «purgatory» into 25 languages

TRANSLATOR
online translator

TRANSLATION OF PURGATORY

Find out the translation of purgatory to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.
The translations of purgatory from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «purgatory» in English.

Translator English - Chinese

炼狱
1,325 millions of speakers

Translator English - Spanish

el purgatorio
570 millions of speakers

English

purgatory
510 millions of speakers

Translator English - Hindi

यातना
380 millions of speakers
ar

Translator English - Arabic

المطهر
280 millions of speakers

Translator English - Russian

чистилище
278 millions of speakers

Translator English - Portuguese

purgatório
270 millions of speakers

Translator English - Bengali

প্রায়শ্চিত্তমূলক
260 millions of speakers

Translator English - French

purgatoire
220 millions of speakers

Translator English - Malay

Purgatory
190 millions of speakers

Translator English - German

Fegefeuer
180 millions of speakers

Translator English - Japanese

煉獄
130 millions of speakers

Translator English - Korean

연옥
85 millions of speakers

Translator English - Javanese

Purgatory
85 millions of speakers
vi

Translator English - Vietnamese

để luyện tội
80 millions of speakers

Translator English - Tamil

பாவக்கடன்
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Marathi

कॅथोलिक चर्चच्या बाहेर पडण्याची क्रिया
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Turkish

araf
70 millions of speakers

Translator English - Italian

purgatorio
65 millions of speakers

Translator English - Polish

czyściec
50 millions of speakers

Translator English - Ukrainian

чистилище
40 millions of speakers

Translator English - Romanian

purgatoriu
30 millions of speakers
el

Translator English - Greek

καθαρτήριο
15 millions of speakers
af

Translator English - Afrikaans

vagevuur
14 millions of speakers
sv

Translator English - Swedish

skärseld
10 millions of speakers
no

Translator English - Norwegian

skjærsilden
5 millions of speakers

Trends of use of purgatory

TRENDS

TENDENCIES OF USE OF THE TERM «PURGATORY»

The term «purgatory» is quite widely used and occupies the 37.489 position in our list of most widely used terms in the English dictionary.
0
100%
FREQUENCY
Quite widely used
83
/100
The map shown above gives the frequency of use of the term «purgatory» in the different countries.
Principal search tendencies and common uses of purgatory
List of principal searches undertaken by users to access our English online dictionary and most widely used expressions with the word «purgatory».

FREQUENCY OF USE OF THE TERM «PURGATORY» OVER TIME

The graph expresses the annual evolution of the frequency of use of the word «purgatory» during the past 500 years. Its implementation is based on analysing how often the term «purgatory» appears in digitalised printed sources in English between the year 1500 and the present day.

Examples of use in the English literature, quotes and news about purgatory

EXAMPLES

10 QUOTES WITH «PURGATORY»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word purgatory.
1
Venerable Bede
Purgatory fire will be more intolerable than all the torments that can be felt or conceived in this life.
2
Arnold Bennett
Of all the inhabitants of the inferno, none but Lucifer knows that hell is hell, and the secret function of purgatory is to make of heaven an effective reality.
3
Tracie Bennett
I used to be a major people pleaser, but that way purgatory lies.
4
James Blake
We live with incessant music, all the time. It's like some weird musical purgatory, there is absolutely no rest for the ears, no space to absorb and reflect.
5
Lincoln Child
My first job out of college was as an editorial assistant in a New York publishing house. Being an editorial assistant is the purgatory would-be editors must endure before they can ascend the ladder and begin acquiring books on their own. I spent a year filing paperwork, writing copy, and typing rejection letters.
6
John Florio
England is the paradise of women, the purgatory of men, and the hell of horses.
7
Jean-Luc Godard
I had the feeling that Sarajevo was the perfect place to shoot the film I wanted to shoot. It is the perfect illustration of purgatory.
8
Abraham Lincoln
Marriage is neither heaven nor hell, it is simply purgatory.
9
Federica Montseny
We need no messiah and no sterile conception of a god menacing us with hell and purgatory.
10
Katee Sackhoff
I think God's wrath and purgatory are the only things keeping me on the straight and narrow. I like the idea of purgatory. It's like a cosmic do-over.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «PURGATORY»

Discover the use of purgatory in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to purgatory and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.
1
Purgatory
Records the physical, cultural, and spiritual violence perpetrated against the Chilean people under Pinochet's military dictatorship through poetry, describing the author's own torture during this violent political transformation.
Raúl Zurita, 2009
2
Hamlet in Purgatory
Thus, the space of Purgatory became the stage haunted by literature's most famous ghost. This book constitutes an extraordinary feat that could have been accomplished by only Stephen Greenblatt.
Stephen Greenblatt, 2009
3
The Birth of Purgatory
Noting that the doctrine of Purgatory does not appear in the Latin theology of the West before the late twelfth century, the author identifies the profound social and intellectual changes which caused its widespread acceptance
Jacques Le Goff, 1986
4
Purgatory
Purgatorio is Martínez's most moving, most autobiographical novel and yet it is also a ghost story, the ghost story which has been Argentina's history since 1973.
Tomás Eloy Martínez, 2011
5
The Amazing Secret of the Souls in Purgatory
This small book contains an interview with Maria Simma, an elderly Austrian woman, who testifies to being regularly visited by souls in Purgatory who answer secrets about that realm and who plead for the prayers of the living.
Sister Emmanuel, 1997
6
Purgatory: A Novel of the Civil War
When these two find themselves admiring more than one another's spirit and demeanor, when passions erupt between captor and captive, will this new romance survive the arduous trek to Purgatory Mountain?
Jeff Mann, 2012
7
After Lives: A Guide to Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory
In After Lives, British scholar John Casey provides a rich historical and philosophical exploration of the world beyond, from the ancient Egyptians to St. Thomas Aquinas, from Martin Luther to modern Mormons.
John Casey, 2009
8
The Souls of Purgatory: The Spiritual Diary of a ...
The life of the black religious servant Ursula de Jesús (1604-1666) has remained one of the best-kept historical secrets of the New World.
Ursula de Jesús, Nancy E. Van Deusen, 2004
9
Purgatory: The Logic of Total Transformation
Revised version of the author's thesis (Ph.D.)-- Notre Dame, 2010.
Jerry L. Walls, 2012
10
Purgatory
From the Trade Paperback edition.
Dante, 2009

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «PURGATORY»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term purgatory is used in the context of the following news items.
1
Iron Horse shut down at Purgatory
Law enforcement work at Purgatory on U.S. Highway 550 Saturday afternoon to turn away Iron Horse riders who have not made it past that point. Weather on the ... «The Durango Herald, May 15»
2
3 women sue Washington County over alleged sexual abuse at …
... damages that alleges three inmates at Washington County's Purgatory Correctional Facility were sexually assaulted and that the sheriff and county authorities ... «fox13now.com, Apr 15»
3
Sale of Durango Mountain Resort finalized with name change back …
Purgatory at Durango Mountain Resort is famous for low crowds, lift lines and traffic. (The Denver Post | Courtesy Purgatory at Durango Mountain Resort). «The Denver Post, Feb 15»
4
Massachusetts hiker dies in fall from Purgatory Falls
LYNDEBOROUGH, N.H. —Authorities have identified a woman who was out hiking and fell into Purgatory Falls near Lyndeborough, New Hampshire. They say ... «WCVB Boston, Jan 15»
5
Is This Market Purgatory? Or Is It Hell? GMO Ponders the Possibilities
Are investors in purgatory, or hell? That's the less-than-uplifting question posed at the start of GMO LLC's most recent letter to investors. Despite a nearly six-year ... «Wall Street Journal, Nov 14»
6
What Is Purgatory? Inside the Spiritual Realm That's Neither Heaven …
Purgatory is a spiritual realm where souls go when they have not been condemned to hell, yet are still not cleansed of sin enough to enter heaven — a realm in ... «TheBlaze.com, Nov 14»
7
All Souls' Day 2014: Importance of the Day; Idea of 'Purgatory' and 6 …
It is said that the intention of the day is to assist those in purgatory – an intermediate state after physical death in which those destined to go to heaven undergo ... «International Business Times, India Edition, Nov 14»
8
Newly Formed Ski Company Just Bought Purgatory Ski Resort
Durango Mountain Resort (formally known as Purgatory), has been on the market for a new owner for a while now, and locals were concerned that the ski area ... «Curbed Seattle, Oct 14»
9
Is 'Sleepy Hollow' Purgatory Accurate? The Show Really, Really …
Purgatory, or the world between worlds, in Sleepy Hollow is a creepy gray place filled with trees and forest and not much else though it also contains other souls, ... «Bustle, Sep 14»
10
Bumpy ride ahead through pothole purgatory
Hate potholes? Well, unless you and your elected officials are ready to cough up billions more for better roads and proper preventive maintenance, buckle up, ... «The Seattle Times, Feb 14»

REFERENCE
« EDUCALINGO. Purgatory [online]. Available <https://educalingo.com/en/dic-en/purgatory>. Apr 2024 ».
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