bottom feeder

Sometimes bot·tom-fish·er
Or bot·tom-feed·er

[bot-uhm fee-der]

noun

1. bottom fish.

2. an opportunist, as in politics or business.

   bottom feeders who buy up commercial failures.

3. a person or thing having low status or value; loser.

   bottom feeders hanging out in seedy bars.

4. a person who appeals to base instincts.

   Gossip columnists are the bottom feeders of journalism.

bottom feeder

noun

1. a fish that feeds on material at the bottom of a river, lake, sea, etc

2. an objectionable and unimpressive person or thing

3. Also called: bottom fisher. a speculator who buys shares in companies that are performing poorly in anticipation of improved performance

Word History and Origins

Origin of bottom feeder¹

First recorded in 1850–55

Example Sentences

As the grisly opening frame of the finale shows us, we’re just meat for bottom feeders.

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The tabloid’s reporting on Edwards won new respect for a publication that had been derided as a bottom feeder in news media circles.

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In Weidman’s novel, the main character, a garment industry climber named Harry Bogen, is an impenitent snake, a moral bottom feeder who knows no bottom.

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His late-career resurgence has been instrumental in the Diamondbacks’ leap from bottom feeders to title contenders.

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They do get a run up into early April with eight games in 10 against last season’s bottom feeders Anaheim, Arizona, San Jose and Montreal.

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