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After the Witch-king is stabbed by Merry and Éowyn Tolkien writes..

a cry went up into the shuddering air, and faded to a shrill wailing, passing with the wind, a voice bodiless and thin that died, and was swallowed up, and was never heard again in that age of this world.

What does he mean here? If the Witch-king is mortal and dead then he will have left the circles of the world wouldn't he? Or was Tolkien intending to have him somehow resurrected?

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    <language warning>The Witch King did a great big fart.</language warning>
    – Möoz
    Mar 27, 2017 at 0:11

2 Answers 2

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Tolkien is most likely not referring to the Witch King, for he is indeed a mortal Man and thus suffers from the Doom of Man. That can only be changed by the will of Eru Illuvatar alone, a grace that has only been extended once. Tolkien has shown no indication he would make a second exception, much less for a servant of Morgoth.

Most likely, Tolkien is describing the aforementioned

a cry went up into the shuddering air, and faded to a shrill wailing, passing with the wind, a voice bodiless and thin that died, and was swallowed up,...

It is describing here that the Witch King's death cry is so terrible and bone-chilling that no other death will surpass it for what remains of the Third Age.

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I have never encountered any of Tolkien's writings which indicate that he intended for the Witch-King to return. "... was never heard again in that age of the world." is just a flowery way of saying "dead and gone."

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    I agree, this is just poetic language
    – dormisher
    Mar 28, 2017 at 10:04

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