abyss

¹ American  

[uh-bis] / əˈbɪs /

noun

1. a deep, immeasurable space, gulf, or cavity; vast chasm.

2. anything that seems to be without end or is impossible to measure, define, or comprehend.

   the abyss of their grief and sorrow.

3. (in ancient cosmogony)

   1. the primal chaos before Creation.

   2. the infernal regions; hell.

   3. a subterranean ocean.

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Abyss. ² American  

abbreviation

1. Abyssinia.

2. Abyssinian.

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abyss British  

/ əˈbɪs /

noun

1. a very deep or unfathomable gorge or chasm

2. anything that appears to be endless or immeasurably deep, such as time, despair, or shame

3. hell or the infernal regions conceived of as a bottomless pit

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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.

Example Sentences

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

And, as they stare into the abyss, one detail of the standings has made this season even worse than Tottenham could have ever imagined.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 14, 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

Klein attached an array of small pebbles to the painting's surface, making it "evocative of a seabed beneath the blue abyss of an ocean", according to the auction house's description.

From Barron's • Oct. 23, 2025

Waiting for my teammates to arrive, I sat with my feet hanging over the abyss, staring across the clouds, looking down on the tops of 22,000-foot peaks that a month earlier had towered overhead.

From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer

Related Words

• chasm
• crevasse
• depth
• void