Tophet

American  

[toh-fit, -fet] / ˈtoʊ fɪt, -fɛt /

Or Topheth

noun

Bible.

1. a place in the valley of Hinnom, near Jerusalem, where, contrary to the law, children were offered as sacrifices, especially to Moloch. It was later used as a dumping ground for refuse.

2. the place of punishment for the wicked after death; hell.

3. some place, condition, etc., likened to hell.

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Tophet British  

/ ˈtəʊfɛt /

noun

1. Old Testament a place in the valley immediately to the southwest of Jerusalem; the Shrine of Moloch, where human sacrifices were offered

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Etymology

Origin of Tophet

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, ultimately derived from Hebrew tōpheth a placename

Example Sentences

A domain larger than Belgium, wilder than Abyssinia, more visited than Rome, colder than Moose Factory and hotter than Tophet, a fabulously scenic empire scattered over half a continent, quietly changed hands last week.

From Time Magazine Archive

One winter when teaching in Tophet, I boarded with a Methodist man.

From Autobiography of Z. S. Hastings by Hastings, Z. S.

As I have said, it was a miserable night, dark as the pit of Tophet.

From Pharos, The Egyptian A Romance by Boothby, Guy

In the gloom of the stuffy fo'c'sle, the sight of which forcibly reminded him of his quarters on the Tophet, Ellerton found the required articles.

From The Nameless Island A Story of some Modern Robinson Crusoes by Westerman, Percy F. (Percy Francis)

Distant shouts arose, the Sheep Gate choked suddenly with a mass, Kedron's banks, the tombs of Tophet and the rubbish heaps there yielded up clambering, running people.

From Saul of Tarsus A Tale of the Early Christians by Miller, Elizabeth