underworld

[uhn-der-wurld]

noun

1. the criminal element of human society.

2. the imagined abode of departed souls or spirits; Hades.

3. a region below the surface, as of the earth or a body of water.

4. the opposite side of the earth; the antipodes.

5. Archaic.,  the earth.

underworld

/ ˈʌndəˌwɜːld /

noun

1. 1. criminals and their associates considered collectively

   2. ( as modifier )

      underworld connections

2. the regions below the earth's surface regarded as the abode of the dead; Hades

Word History and Origins

Origin of underworld¹

First recorded in 1600–10; under- + world

Example Sentences

The ice is still hot, as they might say in the Parisian underworld.

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Asamando was one of the story-time subjects that Grandma would talk about, this magical underworld where age, sickness, and pain don’t exist—where the ancestors dance with the abosom, the Ghanaian gods and spirits.

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He had no interest in mining and no experience confronting the Mexican underworld.

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Two nights later, prosecutors say, Jones was dishing about his friend to the gambling underworld.

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As one descends the underworld’s nine circles, they must be careful not to let ne’er-do-wells and scoundrels extinguish their flame.

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Related Words

• gangland 
• mob 
• organized crime www.thesaurus.com
• syndicate