different between damnation vs netherworld

English

Etymology

From Middle English dampnacioun, from Old French dampnacion, from Latin damnatio.

Pronunciation

• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /dæm?ne???n/
• Rhymes: -e???n

Noun

damnation (countable and uncountable, plural damnations)

1. The state of being damned; condemnation; openly expressed disapprobation.
2. (religion) Condemnation to everlasting punishment in the future state, or the punishment itself.

Synonyms

• (euphemistic): tarnation

Antonyms

• (in religion): salvation

Translations

French

Etymology

From Latin damn?ti?.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d?.na.sj??/

Noun

damnation f (plural damnations)

1. damnation

Related terms

• damner

Further reading

• “damnation” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

English

Alternative forms

• nether world

Etymology

From nether- (“beneath, lower”) +? world.

Noun

netherworld (plural netherworlds)

1. The place to which one's spirit descends upon death, conceived as below the surface of the earth.

   In some religions, one's soul departs to a netherworld, hell, instead of the heavens.

2. The locale of the spirit world or afterlife, whether deemed to be situated below the world of the living or not.

   While I was astrally projecting, I felt my soul pass through many insubstantial netherworlds.

3. Specifically, a location of punishment in the afterlife; a hell.

   The missionary was motivated by a sincere desire to rescue souls from eternal torment in the netherworld.

4. (by extension) A hidden, shadowy, or sinister subculture, such as that of organized crime.

   Richard had been initiated into the netherworld of dog racing by his father, and knew all the popular greyhound performance-enhancing drugs.

Usage notes

Depending on cultural context, it may be appropriate to construct this as the netherworld, if only one is supposed to exist.

Synonyms

• (subterranean region for spirits of the dead): Hades, hell, nether region, underworld
• (location of the spirit world or afterlife): astral plane, heaven
• (place of punishment after death): damnation, Hades, hell, underworld
• (hidden, shadowy, or sinister subculture): underworld

Translations