- abysm
- noun
Etymology: Middle English abime, from Anglo-French abisme, modification of Late Latin abyssus
Date: 14th century
abyss <the dark backward and abysm of time — Shakespeare>
New Collegiate Dictionary. 2001.
abysm
Look at other dictionaries:
Abysm — A*bysm , n. [OF. abisme; F. abime, LL. abyssimus, a superl. of L. abyssus; Gr. ?. See {Abyss}.] An abyss; a gulf. The abysm of hell. Shak. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
abysm — (n.) bottomless gulf, greatest depths, now chiefly poetic, c.1300, from O.Fr. abisme (Mod.Fr. abîme), from V.L. *abyssimus (source of Sp., Port. abismo), which represents either a superlative of L. abyssus or a formation on analogy of Greek… … Etymology dictionary
abysm — *gulf, chasm, abyss … New Dictionary of Synonyms
abysm — [ə biz′əm] n. [OFr abisme < ML abysmus, altered after suffix ismus (see ISM) < L abyssus: see ABYSS] Old Poet. an abyss … English World dictionary
abysm — /euh biz euhm/, n. an abyss. [1250 1300; ME abi(s)me < MF abisme < VL *abyssimus, a neologistic pseudo superl. of LL abyssus ABYSS] * * * … Universalium
abysm — noun /əˈbɪzəm/ An abyss; a gulf, a chasm, a very deep hole … Wiktionary
abysm — (Roget s Thesaurus II) noun Something of immeasurable and vast extent: abyss, chasm, deep, depth (often used in plural), gulf. See HIGH … English dictionary for students
abysm — a·bysm || É™ bɪzÉ™m n. abyss, yawning chasm, immeasurable void; something unfathomable; abode of the dead, hell … English contemporary dictionary
abysm — [ə bɪz(ə)m] noun literary an abyss. Origin ME: from OFr. abisme, med. L. abysmus, alt. of late L. abyssus bottomless pit … English new terms dictionary
abysm — a•bysm [[t]əˈbɪz əm[/t]] n. an abyss • Etymology: 1250–1300; < MF abisme … From formal English to slang
