abyssal
Americanadjective
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of or like an abyss; immeasurable; unfathomable.
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Oceanography. of or relating to the biogeographic zone of the ocean bottom between the bathyal and hadal zones: from depths of approximately 13,000 to 21,000 feet (4,000 to 6,500 meters).
adjective
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of or belonging to the ocean depths, esp below 2000 metres (6500 feet)
abyssal zone
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geology another word for plutonic
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Relating to the greatest depths of the oceans and to the organisms that live there. The abyssal zone encompasses all depths below 4,000 m (13,120 ft).
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Relating to the region of the ocean bottom between the bathyal and hadal zones, from depths of approximately 2,000 to 6,000 m (6,560 to 19,680 ft). The abyssal zone includes nearly two-thirds of the Earth's surface.
Etymology
Origin of abyssal
First recorded in 1600–10; from Medieval Latin abyssālis, abyss, -al 1
Vocabulary lists containing abyssal
Earth Science - Middle School
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Earth Science - High School
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Oceanography - Middle School
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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.
On the seafloor, you can find canyons, volcanoes and vast abyssal planes.
From Salon • May 21, 2025
An underwater earthquake or a landslide can snap the cable deep in the abyssal zone.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 28, 2025
As Alvin is deployed elsewhere, the deeper range will also put sites such as abyssal plains in reach, says Jeffrey Marlow, an environmental microbiologist at Boston University.
From Science Magazine • May 21, 2024
These latest international talks continue an ongoing effort to decide what rules should apply to companies that want to collect minerals from the abyssal plain, one of the deepest parts of the ocean.
From BBC • Mar. 17, 2024
The hurried search of the decks, her frustration ceding to worry and abyssal panic when she realized the Assassin was no longer on board.
From "The Reader" by Traci Chee
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.
