at bottom

Idioms  

1. Fundamentally, basically; also, in reality. For example, He may speak somewhat bluntly, but at bottom he's always honest. Charles Dickens used this idiom in Nicholas Nickleby (1838): “He's a good pony at bottom.” [Early 1700s]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

at bottom

For at bottom, the case pits criminal defendants against an administrative agency at a time when many of the conservative justices have been inclined to vote for neither.

From Slate ● Oct. 6, 2026

Philosopher Timothy McGrew then observes that Mr. Dawkins “has famously said that ‘the universe has at bottom just those properties one would expect if there were no design, no purpose, only blind pitiless indifference.’

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 2026

With Rangers held to a 2-2 draw at bottom club Livingston and defending champions Celtic beaten at home by Hibernian on Sunday, Hearts boss Derek McInnes must have been watching on with a big grin.

From BBC ● Feb. 22, 2026

Cole Palmer scored a first half hat-trick as fifth-placed Chelsea won 3-1 at bottom of the table Wolves.

From Barron's ● Feb. 7, 2026

That head: Bald for most of its surface, trimmed at bottom with a tangled white beard, it resembled an ivory Christmas ball resting on a bed of excelsior.

From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson

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