51Թ

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View synonyms for

bottom

[bot-uhm]

noun

  1. the lowest or deepest part of anything, as distinguished from the top.

    the bottom of a hill;

    the bottom of a page;

    the tea leaves at the bottom of my cup.

    Synonyms: , ,
  2. the under or lower side; underside.

    The sell-by date is printed on the bottom of the package.

  3. the ground under any body of water.

    The study sent a camera to the bottom of the sea.

  4. Also called bottom land.Physical Geography.Usually bottoms low alluvial land next to a river.

  5. Informal.the buttocks; rump.

  6. the seat of a chair.

    Don't sit in that one, the bottom is broken.

  7. the fundamental part; basic aspect.

    Synonyms: ,
  8. the cause; origin; basis.

    Try getting to the bottom of the problem.

    Synonyms: , , , ,
  9. lowest limit, especially of dignity, status, or rank.

    When people sink that low, they're bound to reach the bottom soon.

  10. (used with a plural verb)bottoms, the bottom part of a two-piece article of clothing, such as a bathing suit or a pair of pajamas.

  11. Baseball.

    1. the second half of an inning.

    2. the last three players in the batting order.

  12. Nautical.

    1. the part of a hull between the bilges, including the keel.

    2. the part of a hull that is immersed at all times.

    3. the cargo space in a vessel.

    4. a cargo vessel.

  13. the working part of a plow, comprising the plowshare, landside, and moldboard.

  14. Slang.

    1. (in the LGBTQ community) a person who prefers to take or is currently taking a receptive role in a particular sexual act, especially in anal intercourse.

    2. (especially in BDSM) a person who prefers to take or is currently taking a submissive role in a sexual relationship.

  15. Chemistry.Usually bottoms the heaviest, least volatile fraction of petroleum, left behind in distillation after more volatile fractions are driven off.



verb (used with object)

  1. to furnish with an under or lowest side.

    The oven needed to be bottomed before it could be used.

  2. to base or found (usually followed by on orupon ).

    A defense must be bottomed on reliable evidence.

  3. to discover the full meaning of (something); fathom.

  4. to bring (a submarine) to rest on the ocean floor.

    They had to bottom the sub until the enemy cruisers had passed by.

verb (used without object)

  1. to be based; rest.

  2. to strike against the bottom or end; reach the bottom.

  3. (of an automotive vehicle) to sink vertically, as when bouncing after passing over a bump, so that the suspension reaches the lower limit of its motion.

    The car bottomed too easily on the bumpy road.

  4. Slang.

    1. (in the LGBTQ community) to take a receptive role in a particular sexual act, especially in anal intercourse.

    2. (especially in BDSM) to take a submissive role in a sexual relationship or encounter.

adjective

  1. of or relating to the bottom or a bottom.

  2. located on or at the lowest part or side.

    I want the bottom book in the stack.

  3. lowest.

    They sold off the last of the stock at bottom prices.

  4. living near or on the bottom.

    A flounder is a bottom fish.

  5. fundamental.

    The bottom cause of the issue is a lack of funding.

verb phrase

  1. to reach the lowest state or level.

    The declining securities market finally bottomed out and began to rise.

bottom

/ ˈɒə /

noun

  1. the lowest, deepest, or farthest removed part of a thing

    the bottom of a hill

  2. the least important or successful position

    the bottom of a class

  3. the ground underneath a sea, lake, or river

  4. to run aground

  5. the inner depths of a person's true feelings (esp in the phrase from the bottom of one's heart )

  6. the underneath part of a thing

  7. nautical the parts of a vessel's hull that are under water

  8. (in literary or commercial contexts) a boat or ship

  9. billiards snooker a strike in the centre of the cue ball

  10. a dry valley or hollow

  11. (often plural) the low land bordering a river

  12. the lowest level worked in a mine

  13. (esp of horses) staying power; stamina

  14. importance, seriousness, or influence

    his views all have weight and bottom

  15. informalthe buttocks

  16. in reality; basically or despite appearances to the contrary

    he's a kind man at bottom

  17. to be the ultimate cause of

  18. to discover the real truth about

  19. to destroy or eliminate

“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

adjective

  1. lowest or last

    the bottom price

  2. to be absolutely sure of (one's opinion, a person, project, etc)

  3. of, relating to, or situated at the bottom or a bottom

    the bottom shelf

  4. fundamental; basic

“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

verb

  1. (tr) to provide (a chair, etc) with a bottom or seat

  2. (tr) to discover the full facts or truth of; fathom

  3. to base or be founded (on an idea, etc)

  4. (intr) nautical to strike the ground beneath the water with a vessel's bottom

  5. mining

    1. to mine (a hole, claim, etc) deep enough to reach any gold there is

    2. to reach (gold, mud, etc) on bottoming

  6. electronics to saturate a transistor so that further increase of input produces no change in output

“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
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Other 51Թ Forms

  • unbottom verb (used with object)
  • underbottom noun
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51Թ History and Origins

Origin of bottom1

First recorded before 1000; Middle English botme, Old English botm; akin to Old Norse botn, Dutch bodem, German Boden; cognate with Latin fundus, Greek ٳḗn, Sanskrit ܻá
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51Թ History and Origins

Origin of bottom1

Old English botm ; related to Old Norse botn , Old High German bodam , Latin fundus , Greek ܳٳŧ
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Idioms and Phrases

Idioms
  1. bottoms up, (used as an interjection to announce or urge the downing of one's drink).

  2. hit bottom, to fall into the worst of all possible circumstances.

    After all those years of flying high, she finally hit bottom.

    When the housing market crashed, it really hit bottom, leaving people with houses worth less than their mortgages.

  3. bet one's bottom dollar,

    1. to wager the last of one's money or resources.

    2. to be positive or assured.

      You can bet your bottom dollar that something will prevent us from leaving on time.

  4. at bottom, in reality; fundamentally: Also at the bottom

    They knew at bottom that they were only deceiving themselves.

In addition to the idioms beginning with bottom, also see at bottom; from head to toe (top to bottom); from the bottom of one's heart; get to the bottom; hit (touch) bottom; knock the bottom out of; rock bottom; touch bottom; you bet your ass (bottom dollar).
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

She held a laminated copy of the Constitution that was shredded at the bottom.

From

"The amount of hard work this has taken to turn the ship around... we were bottom three years ago," added Spencer.

From

That total amounts to a nearly 4% reduction in federal resources for households in the bottom 10% of the income distribution.

From

The steward at the bottom of the steps in front of the Lord's pavilion must be in danger of suffering from repetitive strain injury.

From

“If you are commander in Gilead, then you are by definition this toxic, poisonous force that needs to be rooted out from top to bottom.”

From

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Related 51Թs

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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