bottom

1 of 3

noun

bot·​tom ˈbä-təm How to pronounce bottom (audio)
1
a
: the underside of something
at the bottom of the box
a cut on the bottom of her foot
The vase is signed on the bottom.
b
: a surface (such as the seat of a chair) designed to support something resting on it
used figuratively in phrases like the bottom dropped out to describe a sudden collapse or downturn
lost millions when the bottom dropped out of the stock market
c
: buttocks, rump
a baby with a rash on his bottom
2
: the surface on which a body of water lies
sank to the bottom of the ocean
3
nautical
a
: the part of a ship's hull lying below the water
b
: boat, ship
cargo … carried by foreign bottomsVirginia A. Oakes
4
a
: the lowest part or place
the bottom of the page
stood at the bottom of the stairs
b
: the remotest or inmost point
sail to the bottom of the bay
c
: the lowest or last place in rank or position
The CEO started at the bottom and worked her way up.
graduated at the bottom of the class
the bottom of the pay scale
d
clothing : the part of a garment worn on the lower part of the body
white tops and navy blue bottoms
a bikini bottom
especially : the pants of pajamas
usually used in plural
e
baseball : the last half of an inning
the bottom of the ninth
f
music : the bass or baritone instruments of a band
5
geography : bottomland
usually used in plural
the Mississippi river bottoms
6
: basis, source
trying to get to the bottom of these rumors
7
: capacity (as of a horse) to endure strain
a breed of dogs outstanding for bottom
8
textiles : a foundation color applied to fibers before dyeing
9
physics : a fundamental quark that accounts for the existence and lifetime of upsilon particles and has an electric charge of −¹/₃ and a measured energy of approximately 5 GeV
also : the flavor (see flavor entry 1 sense 4b) characterizing this particle
bottomed adjective

bottom

2 of 3

verb

bottomed; bottoming; bottoms

transitive verb

1
: to furnish (something, such as a chair) with a bottom
2
: to provide a foundation for
men who wanted to bottom the dreams of the RomanticsBonamy Dobrée
3
: to bring to the bottom
bottomed the submarine on the ocean floor
4
: to find the basis or source of (something, such as a rumor) : to get to the bottom (see bottom entry 1 sense 6) of
The mystery hasn't been bottomed.

intransitive verb

1
: to become based or grounded
find on what foundation any proposition bottomsJohn Locke
2
: to reach the bottom
bottoming on the sea floor
3
: to reach a point where a decline is halted or reversed
usually used with out
The team bottomed out in last place.
bottomer noun

bottom

3 of 3

adjective

1
: of, relating to, or situated at the bottom (see bottom entry 1)
bottom rock
2
: frequenting the lowest part or place : frequenting the bottom
bottom fish
Phrases
at bottom
: really, basically
It is, at bottom, a love song.

Examples of bottom in a Sentence

Noun We sailed to the bottom of the bay. the bottom of the garden The poor baby has a rash all over his little bottom. The company's new CEO started at the bottom and worked her way up. Why do I always find myself rooting for the team at the bottom of the league? at the bottom of the pay scale Adjective the bottom rung of the ladder Somebody's fingerprints are all along the bottom edge of the photograph.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Hikers who park on or west of North Curson Avenue can walk to the park entrances near North Vista Street or North Fuller Avenue, at the bottom of the canyon. Caroline Petrow-Cohen, Los Angeles Times, 9 Mar. 2024 Overnight, the worms in the samples wiggled to the bottom and collected in the water. Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 8 Mar. 2024 Spread the vegetable mixture out evenly in the bottom of the pan. Robin Miller, The Arizona Republic, 7 Mar. 2024 Sure, there will be some platooning at the bottom of the lineup, but the San Francisco roster seems as inflexible as ever. Dieter Kurtenbach, The Mercury News, 7 Mar. 2024 In the Facebook video, a man in a Black Jordan hoodie and teal scrub bottoms speaks up. Eli Cahan, Rolling Stone, 7 Mar. 2024 The rain should end late evening or overnight as lows bottom in the 40s again. Dan Stillman, Washington Post, 6 Mar. 2024 San Diego State has tumbled to the bottom of the Mountain West in shooting accuracy at the worst time on the calendar Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options The shooting pain that San Diego State’s basketball team collectively is feeling is the shooting itself. Bryce Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Mar. 2024 To another, it’s ripped stockings, bare butts and bikini bottoms. Leah Dolan, CNN, 4 Mar. 2024
Verb
Why gas prices rise as winter ends Gas prices bottomed at $3.07 a gallon nationally on January 15. Matt Egan, CNN, 16 Feb. 2024 This positive development is supported by the weekly cycle which bottoms this week. Bill Sarubbi, Forbes, 12 Feb. 2024 Meanwhile, housing economists at AEI Housing Center, Zillow, and CoreLogic believe U.S. home prices have bottomed. Lance Lambert, Fortune, 3 Aug. 2023 Low temperatures probably bottom in the teens for the entire region, with wind chills easily in the single digits. Jason Samenow, Washington Post, 19 Jan. 2024 In Southern California, home prices bottomed in February. Andrew Khouri, Los Angeles Times, 16 Nov. 2023 With the Los Angeles Chargers losing, again, and their star quarterback ailing, is this the spot in their dismal season in which rock is introduced to bottom? Jay Paris, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2023 Slok writes that fed-funds futures indicate interest rates will bottom at around 4% and slowly rise again. Wsj Pro, WSJ, 28 Nov. 2023 Best crew, best cast, top to bottom the dream of my life to make something this funny and unwell that went on actual television. Joe Otterson, Variety, 14 Nov. 2023
Adjective
To apply it the TikTok-viral, ombre way, apply the lipstick to the bottom lip, then to the top one. Jenny Berg, Vogue, 8 Mar. 2024 The sites being considered, which are in essential fish habitat conservation areas, are already protected from bottom trawling, which involves dragging a fishing net along the bottom of the ocean. Summer Lin, Los Angeles Times, 7 Mar. 2024 The first goal of the night was a microcosm of Mbappé’s skillset – exploding down the left side of the pitch before bamboozling his defender with some quick feet before lashing it across goal into the bottom corner in the 15th minute. Ben Morse, CNN, 6 Mar. 2024 Arrange a rack in the bottom third of the oven, heat to 425 degrees and line a sheet pan with parchment. Emily Weinstein, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Mar. 2024 Notwithstanding the strong growth, the state’s 4th and 8th-grade students still rank within or near the bottom 10 states in all testing categories examined. Christian Barnard, Orange County Register, 29 Feb. 2024 Like former defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, the Ravens’ blitz rate ranked in the bottom half of the NFL in 2023. Daniel Oyefusi, Miami Herald, 29 Feb. 2024 Share [Findings] Scientists looked forward to studying the flow of Antarctic bottom water from the Weddell Sea into the Scotia Sea. Rafil Kroll-Zaidi, Harper's Magazine, 28 Feb. 2024 The Vikings, Packers, Eagles and Jaguars rounded out the top, while the Commanders, Chiefs and Chargers were bottom three in grades. Daniel Oyefusi, Miami Herald, 28 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bottom.' 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

Noun

Middle English botme, botom, bothom, going back to Old English botm, *boðm, going back to Germanic *butma- (whence, with varying dental consonants, Old Saxon bođom "ground, bottom," Old High German bodam, Old Norse botn), going back to Indo-European *bhudh-mḗn, *bhudh-mn-ós, whence also Greek pythmḗn "bottom, ground, base," Sanskrit budhná- and (with metathesis of stop and nasal) Latin fundus "bottom, base," Middle Irish bonn "sole of the foot"

Verb

derivative of bottom entry 1

Adjective

from attributive use of bottom entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1544, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Adjective

1561, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of bottom was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near bottom

Cite this Entry

“Bottom.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bottom. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

bottom

1 of 2 noun
bot·​tom ˈbät-əm How to pronounce bottom (audio)
1
a
: the undersurface of something
b
: a supporting surface or part : base
2
: the surface on which a body of water lies
3
a
: the part of a ship's hull lying below the water
4
: the lowest part, place, or point
the bottom of the page
5
: the part of a garment worn on the lower part of the body
especially : the trousers of pajamas
usually used in plural
6
: lowland along a river
the Mississippi River bottoms
7
: the most basic or central part : heart
get to the bottom of the problem
8
: the last half of an inning of baseball
bottomed adjective

bottom

2 of 2 verb
1
: to provide a foundation for
2
: to rest on, bring to, or reach the bottom

More from Merriam-Webster on bottom

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