abyss
1 Americannoun
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a deep, immeasurable space, gulf, or cavity; vast chasm.
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anything that seems to be without end or is impossible to measure, define, or comprehend.
the abyss of their grief and sorrow.
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(in ancient cosmogony)
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the primal chaos before Creation.
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the infernal regions; hell.
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a subterranean ocean.
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abbreviation
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Abyssinia.
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Abyssinian.
noun
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a very deep or unfathomable gorge or chasm
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anything that appears to be endless or immeasurably deep, such as time, despair, or shame
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hell or the infernal regions conceived of as a bottomless pit
Etymology
Origin of abyss
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English abissus, from Late Latin abyssus, from Greek ábyssos “bottomless,” equivalent to a- a- 6 + byssós “bottom of the sea”
Explanation
The noun abyss refers to a deep void or chasm — either literal or figurative. Making a momentous life decision with great uncertainty, like enrolling in clown college, might feel like jumping into the abyss. Traditionally, the abyss referred to the "bottomless pit" of Hell. Now it might refer to either a literal chasm or a figurative one: "Thirty years ago, we peered into this abyss and pulled back just in time." The word is sometimes used to describe a wide difference between cultures or nations. Abyss comes from Greek: a- "without" + byssos, "depth, bottom." You may know the related adjective abysmal, which means "appallingly bad" — or "way down in the depths," as it were.
Vocabulary lists containing abyss
Night
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Grade 9, List 5
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"The Odyssey" by Homer, Books 19–24
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"There is no such situation; instead, what we realise is that the country is going further into an abyss."
From Barron's • Apr. 4, 2026
Elsewhere, “Navalny” filmmaker Daniel Roher also tries to look at the bright side in his latest, “The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist,” but only after gazing into the abyss.
From Salon • Mar. 26, 2026
Yes, he has managed to get both because he has a good, long-term job, and he’s slowly crawling out of the abyss.
From MarketWatch • Feb. 18, 2026
But instead of getting devoured by the abyss, he says over Zoom, he honed in on making something “unknown.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 30, 2026
Nor was he near the edge of the abyss.
From "The Amber Spyglass" by Philip Pullman
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.