netherworld en · NOUN
Etymology
Etymology tree English nether- Proto-Indo-European *weyh₁-? Proto-Indo-European *wiHrós Proto-Germanic *weraz Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- Proto-Indo-European *h₂életi Proto-Germanic *alaną Proto-Indo-European *-tis Proto-Germanic *-þiz Proto-Germanic *aldiz Proto-Germanic *weraldiz Proto-West Germanic *weraldi Old English weorold Middle English world English world English netherworld From nether- (“beneath, lower”) + world.
Meanings
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The place to which one's spirit descends upon death, conceived as below the surface of the earth.
As Inanna prepares to descend she fastens the seven divine laws to her side, and as she walks toward the netherworld she speaks to her vizier, Ninshubur.
1981, William Irwin Thompson, The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture, London: Rider/Hutchinson & Co., page 174:In some religions, one's soul departs to a netherworld, instead of the heavens.
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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.
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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.
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(broadly) A hidden, shadowy, or sinister subculture, such as that of organized crime.
Flicks is a large bar which has been in some conflict since it opened […] The nature of that conflict has been characterized as gay-straight, by the bar managers; as crazies-sane, by some residents; as predators-prey, by some bar patrons; and as "netherworld"-respectable, by some bureaucrats.
1975 December 20, Joe Beckmann, “The Vara Bars--What Solution”, in Gay Community News, volume 3, number 25, page 3:Richard had been initiated into the netherworld of dog racing by his father, and knew all the popular greyhound performance-enhancing drugs.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| nether world | alternative | lexicographic | |
| netherworlds | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Synonyms
hell (subterranean region for spirits of the dead) · hell (place of punishment after death) · underworld (hidden, shadowy, or sinister subculture) · heaven (location of the spirit world or afterlife) · Hades (place of punishment after death) · Hades (subterranean region for spirits of the dead) · underworld (place of punishment after death) · nether region (subterranean region for spirits of the dead) · damnation (place of punishment after death) · astral plane (location of the spirit world or afterlife) · underworld (subterranean region for spirits of the dead)
Translations (17)
fr enfers (the spirit world) · hit 𒋼𒂊𒈾𒌋𒉿𒀸 (the spirit world) · cmn 幽冥 (the spirit world) · fr inframonde (the spirit world) · he שְׁאוֹל (the spirit world) · da underverden (the spirit world) · khb ᦵᦙᦲᧂᦕᦲ (the spirit world) · la infera (the spirit world) · ru преиспо́дняя (the spirit world) · fi tuoni (the spirit world) · ko 명계 (the spirit world) · pl zaświaty (the spirit world) · ja 冥界 (the spirit world) · mi Rarohenga (the spirit world) · la Orcus (the spirit world) · hu alvilág (the spirit world) · cmn 冥界 (the spirit world)