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Abyss - Dictionary Definition and Overview |
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Abyss : (noun)
1: a bottomless gulf or pit; any unfathomable (or apparently
unfathomable) cavity or chasm or void extending below
(often used figuratively) [syn: abysm]
Based on WordNet 2.0
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Abyss : \A*byss"\, n. [L. abyssus a bottomless gulf, fr. Gr. ?
bottomless; 'a priv. _ ? depth, bottom.]
1. A bottomless or unfathomed depth, gulf, or chasm; hence,
any deep, immeasurable, and, specifically, hell, or the
bottomless pit.
Ye powers and spirits of this nethermost abyss.
--Milton.
The throne is darkness, in the abyss of light.
--Dryden.
2. Infinite time; a vast intellectual or moral depth.
The abysses of metaphysical theology. --Macaulay.
In unfathomable abysses of disgrace. --Burke.
3. (Her.) The center of an escutcheon.
Note: This word, in its leading uses, is associated with the
cosmological notions of the Hebrews, having reference
to a supposed illimitable mass of waters from which our
earth sprung, and beneath whose profound depths the
wicked were punished. --Encyc. Brit.
Based on WordNet (r) 2.0 (August 2003)
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