fathom

Wikipedia

English

Etymology

From Middle English fathome, fadome, from Old English fæþm, fæþme (“outstretched or encircling arms, embrace, grasp, protection, interior, bosom, lap, breast, womb, fathom, cubit, power, expanse, surface”), from Proto-Germanic *faþmaz (“embrace”), from Proto-Indo-European *pet- (“to spread out, extend”). Cognate with Low German fadem, faem (“a cubit, thread”), Dutch vadem, vaam (“fathom”), German Faden (“thread, filament, fathom”), Danish favn (“embrace, fathom”), Swedish famn (“the arms, bosom, embrace”), Icelandic faðmur (“embrace”).

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈfæðəm/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

Wikipedia fathom (plural fathoms)

1. (obsolete) Grasp, envelopment, control.
2. (nautical) A measure of length corresponding to the outstretched arms, standardised to six feet, now used mainly for measuring depths in seas or oceans.
3. (by extension) Mental reach or scope; penetration; the extent of capacity; depth of thought or contrivance.
   • Shakespeare

     Another of his fathom they have none / To lead their business.

Synonyms

• (measure of length corresponding to the outstretched arms): brace

Translations

measure of length

• Bulgarian: фатом (bg) (fatom) m, клафтер (bg) (klafter) m
• Catalan: braça (ca) f
• Chinese: 一臂长(yi bei chang)
• Czech: sáh
• Danish: favn (da)
• Dutch: vadem
• Erzya: сэль (selj)
• Estonian: süld (et)
• Faroese: favnur (fo) m
• Finnish: syli (fi)
• French: brasse (fr) f
• German: Klafter (de) m and n, Faden (de) m
• Hungarian: öl (hu)
• Italian: braccio (it) m

• Japanese: hiro
• Jèrriais: brache f
• Malay: depa (ms)
• Norwegian: favn (no)
• Polish: sążeń
• Portuguese: braça (pt)
• Russian: морская сажень
• Sanskrit: vyama
• Serbian: хват/hvat
• Slovak: siaha
• Slovene: seženj (sl) m
• Spanish: braza (es)
• Swedish: famn (sv)
• Turkish: kulaç (tr)

Verb

fathom (third-person singular simple present fathoms, present participle fathoming, simple past and past participle fathomed)

1. (transitive, archaic) To encircle with outstretched arms, especially to take a measurement; to embrace.
2. (transitive) To measure the depth of, take a sounding of.
3. (transitive, figuratively) To get to the bottom of; to manage to comprehend (a problem etc.).

   I can't for the life of me fathom what this means.

Synonyms

• fathom out, figure out, puzzle out, work out

Translations

(transitive, archaic) to encircle with outstretched arms

• Catalan: abraçar (ca)
• Finnish: syleillä (fi)
• German: umarmen (de)
• Hungarian: átölel (hu)

• Russian: обхватить (ru) (obxvatitʹ)
• Slovene: objeti (sl)
• Spanish: abrazar (es)
• Swedish: omfamna (sv), famna om (sv)

(transitive) to measure the depth of, take a sounding of

• Catalan: sondejar (ca)
• Finnish: luodata (fi)
• German: loten (de), ausloten (de), sondieren (de)
• Russian: измерять (ru) (izmerjatʹ)

• Slovene: izmeriti (sl)
• Spanish: sondar (es), sondear (es)
• Swedish: loda (sv)

(transitive, figuratively) to manage to comprehend

• Bulgarian: разбирам (bg) (razbiram), проумявам (bg) (proumjavam)
• Catalan: comprendre (ca)
• Czech: proniknout (cs), porozumět do hloubky (cs)
• Danish: begribe (da), fatte (da)
• Finnish: käsittää (fi)
• French: saisir (fr), comprendre (fr)
• Georgian: ჩასწვდება (ka) (č’ascvdeba), სწვდება (ka) (scvdeba)

• German: begreifen (de), verstehen (de), ergründen (de)
• Hungarian: kitalál (hu), megért (hu), rájön (hu)
• Italian: capire (it), comprendere (it)
• Russian: осознавать (ru) (osoznavatʹ), постигать (ru) (postigatʹ)
• Slovene: dognati (sl)
• Spanish: comprender (es), ahondar (es), profundizar (es)

Related terms

• fathomable
• fathometer
• fathomless
• fathom out
• unfathomable

External links

• fathom in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• fathom in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911
• fathom at OneLook Dictionary Search