rock bottom

¹

noun

1. the very lowest level.

   He went bankrupt and touched rock bottom.

rock-bottom

²

[rok-bot-uhm]

adjective

1. at the lowest possible limit or level; extremely low.

   rock-bottom prices.

rock bottom

noun

1. 1. the lowest possible level

   2. ( as modifier )

      rock-bottom prices

Word History and Origins

Origin of rock bottom¹

An Americanism dating back to 1865–70

Origin of rock bottom²

First recorded in 1880–85

Idioms and Phrases

The lowest possible level, absolute bottom, as in Wheat prices have reached rock bottom. This idiom alludes to the presence of bedrock that prevents digging farther down. [Late 1800s]

Example Sentences

Once he joined the Dodgers this year, Sasaki hit rock bottom.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The singer had a long history of addiction: “I’d hit rock bottom a few times in my life, but always from booze and drugs,” he writes.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“This here is rock bottom,” he writes of his time in the tunnels.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

"Even with a powerful government like the Chinese one, it is hard to arrest pessimist sentiments when the economy looks bleak, the job market is cruelly competitive, and birth rate hits rock bottom."

Read more on BBC

Sheen slammed against rock bottom several times before, but those trips to rehab and eventual career recoveries hadn’t occurred in a media age accelerated by social media and dehumanized by GIFs and viral clips.

Read more on Salon

Related Words

• nadir