abysmal

adjective

abys·​mal ə-ˈbiz-məl How to pronounce abysmal (audio)
a-
1
a
: immeasurably low or wretched : extremely poor or bad
abysmal ignorance/poverty
abysmal living conditions
an abysmal performance
b
: having immense or fathomless extension downward, backward, or inward
an abysmal cliff
2
abysmally adverb
abysmally ignorant
an abysmally poor performance

Examples of abysmal in a Sentence

They were living in abysmal ignorance. a desperate cry echoing from the abysmal reaches of the cave
Recent Examples on the Web In my tenure alone, Penn has made headlines for abysmal Covid policies, the discovery of classified Biden-administration documents, anonymous donations from Chinese adversaries. Lexi Boccuzzi, National Review, 9 Mar. 2024 The Jayhawks went an abysmal 5-for-14 (35.7%) on layups in the first half alone. Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 6 Mar. 2024 She was elected in November 2020, before the housing market took a turn for the worse—at least for buyers fighting 8% mortgage rates, sky-high home prices, and abysmal inventory levels. Sydney Lake, Fortune, 5 Mar. 2024 Currently Biden holds an abysmal 38% approval rating with North Carolina voters, according to an Emerson College poll released in February. Phillip M. Bailey, USA TODAY, 3 Mar. 2024 Tesla’s Chinese rival BYD wants to corner the EV market with a new $230,000 supercar Surprising discoveries Last year was an abysmal one for women in film. Morgan Haefner, Quartz, 27 Feb. 2024 Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom arrived on home entertainment after a short seven weekends in theaters and abysmal box office of just (currently) $433 million worldwide, despite little competition and brand recognition as a sequel to a $1 billion blockbuster. Mark Hughes, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2024 Injuries had a lot to do with Sporting’s abysmal early showing last year. Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 21 Feb. 2024 Keep in mind that the wireless charging is more useful on longer drives than shorter ones (unless your battery life is truly abysmal), and the charging and automatic arms need to be plugged into a USB port to work. Rena Behar, Travel + Leisure, 15 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'abysmal.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

abysm + -al entry 1

First Known Use

circa 1656, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Time Traveler
The first known use of abysmal was circa 1656

Dictionary Entries Near abysmal

Cite this Entry

“Abysmal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/abysmal. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

abysmal

adjective
abys·​mal ə-ˈbiz-məl How to pronounce abysmal (audio)
1
: resembling an abyss in huge extent
abysmal ignorance
2
abysmally adverb

More from Merriam-Webster on abysmal

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