Armageddon

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˌɑː(ɹ).məˈɡɛ.dn̩/

Definitions

1. A disastrous occurrence that results in massive devastation and chaos
2. An ultimate and large-scale conflict signifying the end of an era or the world as it is known
3. A conclusive and devastating event representing widespread destruction and upheaval

Etymology: The name begins as a place on a map. Megiddo was an ancient city of Canaan, and its name in Hebrew, "har Megiddo," meant "Mount Megiddo." Yet the Bible never actually places a mountain there. It mentions only a plain or valley of Megiddo, where the Egyptian pharaoh Necho II killed King Josiah of Judah in battle around 609 BCE, prompting great mourning. The New Testament's Book of Revelation later drew on a different prophecy, from Ezekiel, about birds gathering to feast on the slain at a great battle on the mountains of Israel. Somewhere in the transmission, these two ideas merged into a single location for the final battle. The Greek of Revelation rendered the name as "Harmagedōn," and that form passed through Late Latin and Old English into English as a proper noun. The common noun for a catastrophic final conflict came later, derived from that proper noun. Its meaning has drifted far from a single ridge in northern Israel: the name now stands for any climactic clash that seems to end an age.

Synonyms: apocalypse, catastrophe, calamity