Perditions

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A state of ruin or destruction; the process of causing someone to experience suffering or loss; a place of eternal damnation or spiritual suffering in religious contexts
2. The concept of being in a hopeless situation or condition; the act of leading to someone's downfall or misfortune; a theological idea representing a state of punishment after death
3. The condition of being utterly lost or ruined; the act of bringing about someone's failure or hardship; a metaphysical notion of a hellish place for lost souls

Etymology: "Perditions" is the plural of "perdition," a noun that comes from Latin "perditio," meaning destruction or ruin, formed from "perdere," "to destroy," which combines "per-" (thoroughly) with "dare" (to give). The Latin root thus describes something given away completely, lost beyond recovery. English took the singular from Old French "perdition" and used it first for spiritual ruin: the loss of the soul, damnation, and the place where lost souls go. This theological sense is what gave rise to the phrase "the Son of Perdition," a biblical title for the Antichrist, drawn from the Latin Vulgate's rendering of a Greek phrase in the New Testament. Over time the word broadened from the eternal loss of the soul to any utter ruin, whether of a person's fortune, reputation, or prospects. The plural "perditions" appears mainly in that extended sense, where each instance is a separate ruin or a separate act that brings someone to grief.