martyrdom
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martyrdom
The suffering and death of a person (a martyr) who is persecuted and killed because of their faith or convictions.
Die Geschichte des frühen Christentums ist von vielen Erzählungen über das Martyrium seiner Anhänger geprägt.
The history of early Christianity is shaped by many accounts of the martyrdom of its followers.
The word 'Martyrium' (martyrdom) is closely connected with 'der Märtyrer' (male martyr) or 'die Märtyrerin' (female martyr). The martyrdom is the suffering that the martyr endures.
Der Märtyrer nahm für seinen Glauben das Martyrium auf sich.
The martyr accepted martyrdom for his faith.
The literal meaning refers to suffering and death because of a faith or conviction. The figurative meaning describes a very long, agonizing personal experience, such as a serious illness or an extremely unpleasant situation.
In dem Buch wird das Martyrium der ersten Christen beschrieben.
The book describes the martyrdom of the first Christians.
In the figurative meaning, 'Martyrium' is a very strong and dramatic word. It is used to express great and prolonged suffering, not small everyday problems.
Die stundenlange Fahrt im überfüllten Zug war ein wahres Martyrium.
The hours-long trip on the overcrowded train was a true ordeal.
In the figurative sense, 'Martyrium' is often combined with verbs like 'erleiden' (to suffer), 'durchmachen' (to go through), or 'erleben' (to experience). The phrase 'etwas ist ein Martyrium' (something is an ordeal) is also very common.
Er musste wegen seiner Krankheit ein langes Martyrium durchmachen.
Because of his illness, he had to go through a long ordeal.
hell
'die Hölle' and 'das Martyrium' can both describe great suffering. 'die Hölle' is more suitable for an extremely bad situation, often with chaos, fear, or pain. This can be short or long. 'das Martyrium' puts more emphasis on a long, agonizing period that a person has to endure. It also has a religious meaning when someone suffers and dies because of their faith. If you are saying generally that something was very bad, 'Hölle' sounds more natural. If you want to emphasize long personal suffering, 'Martyrium' is more precise.
Nach dem Unfall begann für ihn ein langes Martyrium mit vielen Operationen.
After the accident, a long ordeal with many operations began for him.
Wegen der Hitze und des Lärms war der Umzug eine Hölle.
Because of the heat and the noise, the move was hell.