Home › Glossary › Letter B

Brimstone

Folklore
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Sulfur associated with divine punishment, hellfire, and demonic presence, often described as the scent or substance of infernal realms.

Detailed Definition
Brimstone in poetry evokes divine wrath and moral judgment, its acrid scent anchoring spiritual terror in sensory detail. It appears in prophetic and apocalyptic verse as a symbol of purification through destruction, linking religious doctrine with visceral imagery of damnation.
Example
Example in poetry:
Brimstone; Brimstone scents the air in a medieval lyric: “The churchyard blooms with sulfur’s breath—each grave exhales the kiss of hell’s own breath”;
Additional Notes
Brimstone, sulfur’s acrid scent, is the olfactory signature of hell in Judeo-Christian and folk traditions, evoking divine wrath and demonic presence. In poetry, it functions as a sensory trigger for terror, moral corruption, or the lingering presence of sin. Its association with volcanic landscapes and ancient purifications links it to purification rituals and apocalyptic visions. Poets use brimstone to ground abstract evil in tangible sensation—its smell lingers in the memory, much like guilt. It often appears alongside fire, ash, and iron in gothic and occult verse.
Also Known As
Sulfur Sulphur brim
Skip to main content