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Glite Dictionary
to reach a nadir

to reach a nadir

8.2
To fall to the lowest point in a situation, for example in money or confidence
  • idiom
  • /riːtʃ ə ˈneɪdər/
  • Formal
translation icon : alcanzar un nadir
  • During the recession, many families reached a nadir as they struggled to make ends meet.

Examples

  • Just when things reach a nadir, another Pyncheon turns up to save the day.

    Blog text (9)

  • Relations between the two states reached a nadir during the two simultaneous scandals, with the colonial rivalry arising from the Fashoda Incident of September 1898 adding fuel to a smoldering fire.

    Academic text (2011)

  • During this period, the porters also sold off personal property, including clothing, a process of impoverishment that reached a nadir in mid-February 1888 for all but a few of the specialized, higher-status porters.

    Academic text (2006)

  • After losing his job and going through a difficult breakup, he felt that he had truly reached a nadir in his life.

  • The company's profits reached a nadir after the major scandal, leading to layoffs and budget cuts.

Synonyms

to bottom
vsto reach a nadir
23 4.2

To reach the lowest point before starting to improve

is about experiencing the lowest or most unsuccessful point without implying recovery
to hit rock bottom
vsto reach a nadir
  • Informal
22 4.8

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

is a general, not necessarily crisis, experience of reaching the lowest point
to hit bottom
vsto reach a nadir
21 5.1

Reach the lowest point after a time of trouble

is about being at the lowest or most unsuccessful point
to bottom out
vsto reach a nadir
11 5.8

To reach the lowest point before starting to get better

does not require recovery and simply marks the lowest point

Antonyms

to prosper
88 3.7

To become successful or grow well, often by making money

to ascend
54 4.0

To move upward to a higher place, for example up a hill or into the sky

How Low

to reach a nadir
  • Formal
8.2
collapse
350 4.1
to decline
344 3.7

Surface Forms

reach a nadir infinitive
reached a nadir past
reached a nadir past participle
reaching a nadir present participle
reaches a nadir third person singular

Morphology

reach + a + nadir

The meaning 'experience the lowest point' is directly and compositionally derived from 'reach' (to attain) + 'nadir' (the lowest point), with 'a' as a determiner, so the phrase transparently means to attain a lowest state. Although 'nadir' is a relatively low-frequency word, if a learner knows that noun the overall meaning is immediately inferable and matches common 'reach + noun' patterns cross-linguistically.

Etymology

Reach a nadir comes from a word used by people who studied the sky: nadir meant the point directly below you, the very lowest spot under the horizon. So, to reach a nadir now means to hit 'the lowest or most unsuccessful point' in a situation.