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fathom

 - 5 dictionary results

fath⋅om

  [fath-uhm] noun, plural fath⋅oms, (especially collectively) fath⋅om, verb
Use fathom in a Sentence
–noun
1. a unit of length equal to six feet (1.8 meters): used chiefly in nautical measurements. Abbreviation: fath
–verb (used with object)
2. to measure the depth of by means of a sounding line; sound.
3. to penetrate to the truth of; comprehend; understand: to fathom someone's motives.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME fathme, OE fæthm span of outstretched arms; c. G Faden six-foot measure, ON fathmr; akin to patent

Related forms:
fath⋅om⋅a⋅ble, adjective
fath⋅om⋅er, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To fathom
fath·om   (fāth'əm)   
n.   Abbr. fth. or fm.
A unit of length equal to 6 feet (1.83 meters), used principally in the measurement and specification of marine depths.
tr.v.   fath·omed, fath·om·ing, fath·oms

  1. To penetrate to the meaning or nature of; comprehend.

  2. To determine the depth of; sound.


[Middle English fathme, from Old English fæthm, outstretched arms; see petə- in Indo-European roots.]
fath'om·a·ble adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

fathom  (n.)
O.E. fæðm "length of the outstretched arm" (a measure of about six feet), also "arms, grasp," and, figuratively "power," from P.Gmc. *fathmaz "embrace" (cf. O.N. faðmr "embrace, bosom," O.S. fathmos "the outstretched arms," Du. vadem "a measure of six feet"), from PIE *pot-/*pet- denoting "stretching out" (cf. Gk. petalon "leaf," L. patere "to be open"). The v. meaning of "take soundings" is 1607; its figurative sense of "get to the bottom of, understand" is 1625.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Bible Dictionary

Fathom

(Old A.S. faethm, "bosom," or the outstretched arms), a span of six feet (Acts 27:28). Gr. orguia (from orego, "I stretch"), the distance between the extremities of both arms fully stretched out.

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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Encyclopedia

fathom

old English measure of length, now standardized at 6 feet (1.83 metre), which has long been used as a nautical unit of depth. The longest of many units derived from an anatomical measurement, the fathom originated as the distance from the middle fingertip of one hand to the middle fingertip of the other hand of a large man holding his arms fully extended. The name comes from the Old English faedm or faethm, meaning outstretched arms

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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