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bottom

bottom

33 5.8
Flat low land next to a river that often floods
  • noun
  • /ˈbɑːtəm/
translation icon : vega
  • Below the cloud forest is the montane rain forest, while valley bottoms contain a lowland forest.
  • valley bottom
  • river bottom
  • stream bottoms

Examples

  • We found wildflowers blooming in the lush bottom near the creek after the heavy rains.

  • Mrs. O'Hara, we finished plowing the creek bottom today.

  • The town also consistently ranked near the bottom for average teacher salary and per pupil expenditures.

    Academic text (2015)
  • The cattle milled in the shelter of the willow brush in the bottom, not wanting to move.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • Logs run aground on the stony bottoms of stream beds, bludgeoned by other logs, banged against boulders.

    Academic text (2003)
  • The farmers grew corn and wheat on the fertile bottom land along the river.

  • During the rainy season, the river's bottom can flood, making the fields rich for planting.

Synonyms

floodplain
vsbottom
11 4.6

Low land next to a river that can flood

is the same concept often written with a space or as one word
flood plain
vsbottom
5 3.7

Flat land next to a river that often floods when the river rises

is the same area but used with different naming or spacing
bottomland
vsbottom
  • US
2 7.2

Low land next to a river that often floods and has rich soil

is an alternative name for this same low river land
alluvial plain
vsbottom
  • Specialized
1 5.8

A flat area of land near a river with rich soil left by floods

is similar but highlights formation by deposits rather than flooding
alluvial flat
vsbottom
  • Specialized
7.5

A flat area of land made by soil left by rivers

is similar but focuses on low river land that is often fertile and flood-prone

Antonyms

20 3.2

An area of high, hilly land often with farms or villages

6 4.9

An area of high land above the low land around it

Idioms

22 4.8

To reach the lowest point in your life before you begin to get better

21 3.2

To do something completely by checking every part

9 6.6

The worst choices left after better ones are gone

To be very sure that something will happen

Use the least good options because nothing better is left

at bottom
  • Formal
3 6.6

Basically what is most true about someone or something

Suddenly become much worse or fail after being stable

A late action that deals with a problem only after it has happened

To risk all your money because you are sure something will happen

Compounds

bottom line
  • Informal
333 3.7

The most important point in a situation

rock bottom
  • Informal
35 4.4

A very low point in life, money, or feelings

bottom line
  • Specialized
26 4.0

The final total showing a company's profit or loss

10 7.4

The last part of the final inning in baseball when the home team bats, a final chance to win

9 6.0

A way that starts with small parts and moves to the whole

7 4.5

At the lowest possible price or level

bottom feeder
  • Offensive
6 7.7

A person who gains from other people's problems by taking advantage of them

An amount of money that is as low as possible

3 7.5

A hidden board in a box or trunk that makes a secret space for hiding things

3 2.9

The ground at the lowest part of a river channel where water flows

3 3.7

The lowest part of the sea where sand and mud rest

bell-bottom
  • Archaic
2 3.9

Trousers with legs that become wider below the knee

2 2.5

The floor of the sea where sand, rocks, and animals live

1 3.1

Ground under the water at the lowest part of a lake

The second half of an inning when the home team bats

bottom dog
  • Offensive
1 9.2

A person or group with low rank who usually loses in competition

1 4.6

A fish that lives near the sea floor, like cod or haddock

1 5.8

A cut of beef from the rear leg used for pot roast

An animal, often a fish, that lives on the bottom of rivers or lakes and eats dead plants and animals

1 3.7

Having a level base that is not curved

1 5.6

Having a curved bottom rather than a flat one

bottom fermentation
  • Specialized
6.3

A slow, cold process that makes alcohol in beer where yeast settles to the bottom, used to make lager beers

5.5

A yeast that sinks to the bottom of a beer tank and makes lager beer

A fish that lives on the bottom of a tank or lake and stays still to catch prey

A cheaper model in a product range that has lower quality and is chosen to save money

9.9

Influence from people in a community, sometimes using sexual appeal to sway decisions

bottom quark
  • Specialized
9.9

A very small particle created in particle experiments that is much heavier than an electron

bottom rot
  • Specialized
7.9

A disease caused by a fungus that makes the bottom leaves of plants rot first

bottom rot fungus
  • Specialized
8.7

A fungus that makes the lower parts of lettuce and other plants rot

An animal like a fish that lives and eats on the bottom of a lake, river, or sea

A habit of always expecting the worst in situations

A fish that lives near the bottom of lakes, rivers, or the sea

With a bottom made of copper often used for pans

copper-bottom
  • Specialized
8.5

A sheet of copper fixed to a ship's bottom to stop barnacles and sea life

fidget-bottom
  • Informal
9.9

A person who cannot sit still and often moves or plays with things

A boat with a level hull for shallow, calm water

A container with a level base that stands steadily

Foggy Bottom
  • Literature
8.2

A nickname for the United States government office that deals with other countries

The lowest point something can reach

round-bottom flask
  • Specialized
4.9

A glass container with a round body and a narrow neck used for heating or mixing chemicals

8.1

A very large blue-grey whale that migrates in southern oceans

Surface Forms

bottom singular
bottoms plural

Etymology

Bottom was used for low land by rivers because it is the 'lowest' place where water and soil collect, much like a river 'bed'. That's why a river 'bottom' means the flat, often rich land beside a stream.