abysm

noun

ə-ˈbi-zəm How to pronounce abysm (audio)
plural abysms
Synonyms of abysmnext
: abyss
What seest thou else / In the dark backward and abysm of time?—William Shakespeare
… watching [The Merchant of Venice starring Al Pacino] is like channel-surfing between a teen romance and a dark abysm of loss and grief.—Roger Ebert

Synonyms of abysm

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Examples of abysm in a Sentence

a recurrent dream in which he would fall helplessly into a dark and silent abysm

Word History

Etymology

borrowed (with later spelling-pronunciation of s) from Anglo-French & Middle French abysme (compare Middle English abyme from Anglo-French abime, abisme), going back to Old French abysme, going back to Vulgar Latin *abismus, alteration of Late Latin abyssus abyss, perhaps via abíss(i)mus, alteration by haplology of abyssíssimus, a superlative derivative from abyssus

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of abysm was in the 14th century

Rhymes for abysm

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Browse Nearby Words

Abyla
abysm
abysmal
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Cite this Entry

“Abysm.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/abysm. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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