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fathomless

fathomless

2 8.6
So deep that you cannot measure or understand it
  • adjective
  • /ˈfæðəmˌləs/
translation icon : insondable
  • The ocean appeared fathomless, stretching far beyond what the eye could see.
  • fathomless depths

Examples

  • That fathomless joy that we're looking for and all those outward experiences can be found within ourselves.

  • We live on the edge of a fathomless dark sea.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • The rough face was calm, and the dark eyes were fathomless.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • A look into the fathomless depths of the soul.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • Everything here reinforced the fathomless depth of time.

    Fiction book (1996)
  • I think of his intense, accomplished wife and sense the fathomless emptiness between them.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • My voice sounds distant, as if I'm speaking through a chamber, an immeasurable chasm, a fathomless void.

    Fiction book (1997)
  • Geula laughed out loud, but her laughter was full of pain, desperation, and fear of the fathomless dark depths of the water.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • It's a contemplation of what Whitman calls the fathomless, sure and winding arms of cool and folding death.

  • Then she shrugged, shot Lily Sheldon a long fathomless look, pocketed her tablet, and walked out.

    Fiction book (2000)

Synonyms

deep
vsfathomless
583 7.6

Hard to understand or explain

emphasizes such great magnitude that it cannot be measured
untold
vsfathomless
52 4.8

A very large amount that cannot be counted or measured

emphasizes extreme number or amount and also unreadable depth
boundless
vsfathomless
27 5.0

Having no limit in size or amount

focuses more on limitless reach while also suggesting great depth
unfathomable
vsfathomless
23 8.6

Very hard to understand or measure how deep something is

emphasizes both great depth and lack of full understanding
bottomless
vsfathomless
19 4.9

So large that it seems to have no limit

focuses more on endlessness while also implying incomprehensible depth
unknowable
vsfathomless
19 7.4

Something you cannot find out or understand

adds a physical or metaphorical depth that resists full measurement
immeasurable
vsfathomless
14 5.5

So large or great you cannot say how big

adds that this size also makes full understanding impossible
incalculable
vsfathomless
13 8.1

Too great to measure or count

shifts focus to extreme size while still implying incomprehensibility
inscrutable
vsfathomless
12 8.9

Hard to understand because it shows no clear meaning or feeling

adds a sense of great size or depth beyond mere mystery
profound
vsfathomless
10 6.2

Very deep and extending far down

stresses the idea of depth plus being beyond full comprehension
ineffable
vsfathomless
  • Formal
8 9.5

So great that words cannot describe it

keeps the idea of great size but not only indescribability
indefinable
vsfathomless
4 6.9

Hard to describe or explain in words

adds the sense of vast depth that resists full measurement
inestimable
vsfathomless
3 8.6

So great that you cannot measure its value

keeps that vastness but also suggests inability to fully grasp it
undefinable
vsfathomless
3 6.8

Hard to describe exactly in words

also points to extreme depth or greatness beyond description
unmeasurable
vsfathomless
1 6.2

Too large or without clear limits to say how big it is

includes that this lack of measure also limits full comprehension
measureless
vsfathomless
  • Literature
1 7.5

Very large in size or number with no clear limit

focuses more on immeasurable size while also suggesting mystery
unfathomed
vsfathomless
1 9.9

Too deep or mysterious to understand

highlights both immeasurable size and being hard to understand
abyssal
vsfathomless
1 9.8

Very deep and hard to understand or imagine

includes the same vast depth and being too deep to grasp
depthless
vsfathomless
1 7.2

So far down that it seems to have no bottom, like an ocean or someone's eyes

adds the idea that this depth cannot be fully understood
incognoscible
vsfathomless
  • Archaic
9.9

Not possible for people to know or understand

also stresses great depth or size beyond comprehension
immensurable
vsfathomless
9.9

Too great to measure

adds the idea that its magnitude also prevents full understanding
nonmeasurable
vsfathomless
7.2

You cannot give a number or amount for it

adds that its depth or greatness also makes it hard to understand

Antonyms

41 3.7

Possible to find how much or how big something is

How Deep

fathomless
2 8.6
profound
159 5.3
deep
332 1.0
shallow
14 3.3

Surface Forms

fathomless positive

Morphology

fathomless = fathom (semi-transparent) = fathom + less

Formed by the productive suffix '-less' on 'fathom', but 'fathom' is relatively low-frequency and carries both a concrete (depth) and abstract (understand) sense which may make exact inference difficult for learners.

Etymology

The word fathomless comes from fathom, an old word meaning 'outstretched arms' that sailors used to measure sea depth, plus the ending -less meaning 'without'. So fathomless means 'without a measure', which is why we call something very deep or very hard to understand 'fathomless'.