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Did fathom Always Refer to a Measurement?
Fathom comes from the Old English word fæthm, meaning "outstretched arms." The noun fathom, which now commonly refers to a measure (especially of depth) of six feet, was originally used for the distance, fingertip to fingertip, created by stretching one's arms straight out from the sides of the body. In one of its earliest uses, the verb fathom was a synonym of our modern embrace: to fathom someone was to encircle the person with your arms. By the 1600s fathom had taken to the seas, with the verb being used to mean "to measure by a sounding line." At the same time, the verb also developed senses synonymous with probe and investigate, and it is now frequently used to refer to the act of getting to the bottom of something, figuratively speaking.
Synonyms
Examples of fathom in a Sentence
Mariette Williams, Condé Nast Traveler, 29 Aug. 2023
In water 45 fathoms deep the boat steamed at 4.8 knots, towing dredges through sandy muck while the crew sweated through an incessant loop.
—C.j. Chivers James Patrick Cronin Elena Hecht Anna Diamond Quinton Kamara, New York Times, 6 June 2024
Armon Sadler, VIBE.com, 20 Nov. 2024
The other side: Some devoted Democrats believe Harris will win in a landslide, unable to fathom how millions of Americans could support someone like Trump.
—Zachary Basu, Axios, 29 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for fathom 
Dictionary Entries Near fathom
Cite this Entry
“Fathom.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fathom. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
fathom
1 of 2 noun
fathom
2 of 2 verb
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