fathom
a unit of length equal to six feet (1.8 meters): used chiefly in nautical measurements. Abbreviation: fath
to measure the depth of by means of a sounding line; sound.
to penetrate to the truth of; comprehend; understand: to fathom someone's motives.
Origin of fathom
1Other words from fathom
- fath·om·a·ble, adjective
- fath·om·er, noun
- un·fath·om·a·ble, adjective
- un·fath·omed, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use fathom in a sentence
While the seafood we dine on comes from much shallower waters, investigating mercury in the deepest fathoms can help us understand its movement and persistence across the entire ocean, Lamborg says.
Researchers found signs of human pollution in animals living six miles beneath the sea | Kate Baggaley | November 19, 2020 | Popular-SciencePain and pleasure are conditions of the soul; conditions which have a definite and quite fathomable limit.
The Complex Vision | John Cowper PowysThey are fathomable; for carried to a certain pitch of intensity they end in ecstasy or they end in death.
The Complex Vision | John Cowper PowysThey are fathomable; for even in the souls of "the immortals" they are only instruments of life warring against death.
The Complex Vision | John Cowper PowysThe twitching would disappear for a time for no fathomable reason, and reappear again.
Tics and Their Treatment | Henry Meigne
But in every other sense, in all that touches the fathomable business of daylight, she has been a conspicuous success.
The Open Secret of Ireland | T. M. Kettle
British Dictionary definitions for fathom
/ (ˈfæðəm) /
a unit of length equal to six feet (1.829 metres), used to measure depths of water
mining a unit of volume usually equal to six cubic feet, used in measuring ore bodies
forestry a unit of volume equal to six cubic feet, used for measuring timber
to measure the depth of, esp with a sounding line; sound
to penetrate (a mystery, problem, etc); discover the meaning of
Origin of fathom
1Derived forms of fathom
- fathomable, adjective
- fathomer, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Browse