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HOW TO PRONOUNCE

abyss

/əˈbɪs/

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American Pronunciation Guide · 1:05
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What does abyss mean?

noun

  1. Hell; the bottomless pit; primeval chaos; a confined subterranean ocean.
  2. A bottomless or unfathomed depth, gulf, or chasm; hence, any deep, immeasurable; any void space.
  3. Anything infinite, immeasurable, or profound.
More meanings (5)

noun

  1. Moral depravity; vast intellectual or moral depth.
  2. An impending catastrophic happening.
  3. The center of an escutcheon; fess point.
  4. The abyssal zone.
  5. (figuratively) A difference, especially a large difference, between groups.

Definitions regrouped for readability · CC BY-SA 4.0

IPA pronunciation

/əˈbɪs/

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0

Other dictionary pronunciations

/æˈbɪs/
Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0

Pronunciation varies by speaker and region. About these dictionary pronunciations.

In the pages of books

See this word in context.

This enormous hole was beyond all measurement, and formed a gloomy abyss, the bottom of which the sun’s rays could never reach.
Jules VerneFrom the Earth to the moon; and, round the moonProject Gutenberg ebook #83
Nevertheless, we will remark cursorily, there is still an abyss between these races of men and the hideous assassin of the towns.
Victor HugoLes MisérablesTranslated by Isabel Florence HapgoodProject Gutenberg ebook #135
More book examples (3)
Groping about the masonry just below the margin, I succeeded in dislodging a small fragment, and let it fall into the abyss.
Edgar Allan PoeThe Works of Edgar Allan Poe — Volume 2Project Gutenberg ebook #2148
Under all this running sea of circumstance, whose waters ebb and flow with perfect balance, lies the aboriginal abyss of real Being.
Ralph Waldo EmersonEssays by Ralph Waldo EmersonProject Gutenberg ebook #16643
“I do forgive you, Hester,” replied the minister at length, with a deep utterance, out of an abyss of sadness, but no anger.
Nathaniel HawthorneThe Scarlet LetterProject Gutenberg ebook #33