to fathom the depth
1
7.5
- idiom
- /ˈfæðəm ðə dɛpθ/
:
comprender la profundidad
- "Drizzt bit his lip, realizing that he would do well to hold his silence until he better fathomed the depth of this unexpected meeting."
Examples
-
It is hard to fathom the depth of her talent; she has written several bestselling novels that resonate with readers.
-
Clearly our human understanding cannot fathom the depths of the question, and this should not surprise us, small as we are.
Blog text (21) -
Indeed, were Shakespeare alive now, I doubt he would be able to fathom the depth of expression in today's films without lots of exposure and would therefore be unable.
Blog text (17) -
I'm about as cynical as they come, but I cannot even fathom the depths of depravity required to orchestrate or facilitate the above.
Blog text (2) -
My experience with some of the land grabs currently being performed in Cuyahoga and Summit counties in Ohio makes it very, VERY easy to "fathom the depths of depravity required to orchestrate/facilitate" the scenario you describe, and imagine that the situation is precisely as you suspect.
Blog text (2) -
Many people struggle to fathom the depth of grief felt by those who have lost loved ones.
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To truly fathom the depth of the universe's mysteries, one must study physics and cosmology for many years.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
To know the meaning of something
146
4.1
To understand something difficult clearly
137
2.7
To understand the meaning of something
57
6.1
To understand something after much thought
36
6.4
Understand the true meaning or nature of something
9
4.3
To understand the meaning of something
7
7.4
To examine something deeply to learn more about it
To understand something more deeply than it first seems
To examine something carefully to find hidden details
Antonyms
How Understood
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'to understand the full extent or seriousness of something' is directly derivable from combining 'fathom' (to grasp/comprehend) with 'depth' (extent/seriousness); the article 'the' is just grammatical. This is a straightforward verb + noun composition following common semantic patterns, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words would readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
The phrase fathom the depth comes from old sailors who measured how deep the sea was. A fathom was six feet on a rope used to measure depth, so to fathom the depth meant to find how deep something was, and today it means 'to fully understand' how big or serious something is.