In Christian belief, a place or state of temporary suffering after death before entering heaven; any situation of suffering or discomfort.
From Latin 'purgatorius' (cleansing), from 'purgare' (to cleanse/purify). The religious concept developed in medieval Catholic theology around the 12th century.
The word 'purgatory' shows how religion shaped language—medieval theology literally invented a new afterlife location, and by the 1200s, 'purgatory' had become a standard English word describing a place that had never existed before in Christian thinking.
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