chamber of horrors
noun /ˌtʃeɪmbər əv ˈhɒrəz/
/ˌtʃeɪmbər əv ˈhɔːrərz/
[singular]- a place displaying objects used to kill people in a cruel and painful way or scenes showing how they died, which people visit for entertainment
- My son enjoyed a visit to the grisly Chamber of Horrors in the basement.
- (figurative) The dentist's surgery was a real chamber of horrors for me.
Word Originmid 19th cent.: from the name given to a room in Madame Tussaud's waxwork exhibition.