chthonic

variants also chthonian
Definition of chthonicnext

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of chthonic Greek myths feature dozens of chthonic divinities and forces. Lewis Hyde, Harpers Magazine, 18 June 2025 But Lloyd is less interested in the specifics of either work than in the chthonic rage underneath. Helen Shaw, The New Yorker, 25 Oct. 2024 And no one suffers quite like the True Believer; surrendering to optimism is an invitation for chthonic forces to start doling out a whole lot of emotional rump puntings. Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 16 Aug. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for chthonic
Adjective
  • Linda Cardellini offers up a killer breakdown to the roaring chorus of the lawn guy’s infernal leaf blower.
    Andy Andersen, Vulture, 23 Mar. 2026
  • But in the case of the Rockies in recent years, that’s just been infernal noise.
    Patrick Saunders, Denver Post, 15 Feb. 2026
Adjective
  • It’s been a hellish week across South Florida.
    Kairi Lowery, Miami Herald, 18 June 2026
  • Others have been wounded, detained by military forces or stuck at sea in hellish conditions.
    Joanne Stocker, CBS News, 16 June 2026
Adjective
  • Some say sulfurous and phenolic, others say straight-up skunky.
    Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 16 June 2026
  • Rescue teams spent four hours navigating the Hardah Dam crater’s steep, rocky terrain and hot sulfurous lake before divers recovered his body roughly 100 feet below the surface.
    Samy Magdy, Los Angeles Times, 14 June 2026
Adjective
  • During the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century, both Martin Luther and John Calvin distinguished spiritual from earthly authority and called for a division of labor between the two.
    Steven K. Green, The Conversation, 2 July 2026
  • People at the most senior levels of the government have no earthly idea what's being discussed inside the White House, inside the Oval Office and the Situation Room.
    Aidan McLaughlin, Vanity Fair, 23 June 2026
Adjective
  • The morning of April 1, 1976, Moore announced on a BBC radio station that at 9:47 am, Pluto would pass behind Jupiter, creating the Jovian-Plutonian Gravitational Effect.
    National Geographic, National Geographic, 31 Mar. 2016
  • His most recent discoveries, the two tiny Plutonian satellites, were named with the help of a popular vote.
    Nadia Drake, WIRED, 15 July 2013

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Cite this Entry

“Chthonic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/chthonic. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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