abyss

English

/əˈbɪs/, /əˈbɪs/

noun
Definitions
  • Hell; the bottomless pit; primeval chaos; a confined subterranean ocean.
  • (frequently) A bottomless or unfathomed depth, gulf, or chasm; hence, any deep, immeasurable; any void space.
  • Anything infinite, immeasurable, or profound.
  • Moral depravity; vast intellectual or moral depth.
  • An impending catastrophic happening.
  • (heraldry) The center of an escutcheon.
  • (oceanography) The abyssal zone.
  • (figurative) A difference, especially a large difference, between groups.

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English abissus derived from Latin abyssus (bottomless pit, a bottomless gulf, abyss) derived from Ancient Greek ἄβυσσος (bottomless) root from Proto-Indo-European *dʰewbʰ- (whisk, smoke, darken, obscure, black, deep, be obscured, plug, wedge, peg, be obscure, whirl, smoky, foggy, dim, mist, stupefaction, daze).

Origin

Proto-Indo-European

*dʰewbʰ-

Gloss

whisk, smoke, darken, obscure, black, deep, be obscured, plug, wedge, peg, be obscure, whirl, smoky, foggy, dim, mist, stupefaction, daze

Concept
Semantic Field

Basic actions and technology

Ontological Category

Action/Process

Kanji

煙

Emoji
🌋 🚬

Timeline

Distribution of cognates by language

Geogrpahic distribution of cognates

Cognates and derived terms