the bottom of the barrel

noun phrase

: the lowest possible condition, level, etc.

After the divorce, Tim felt he had reached/hit the bottom of the barrel.

The excessive coverage of the scandal signals that the news media may have finally hit/reached the bottom of the barrel.

Examples of the bottom of the barrel in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Illinois Republicans must be scraping the bottom of the barrel. — Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 8 July 2026

That’s 25 teams, neatly sorted in order just by looking for blowout games, starting with the first-place Avs and working all the way down to the Rangers at the bottom of the barrel. — Sean McIndoe, New York Times, 3 Apr. 2026

On the other sideline, Hanson sees even more hope for those fan bases perhaps at the bottom of the barrel in the standings this year. — Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 27 Jan. 2026

Instead of pursuing chances to pitch reboots of Hollywood’s most beloved properties, scraping the bottom of the barrel might afford you more opportunities to make films that truly feel your own. — Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 7 Nov. 2025

Rhymes for the bottom of the barrel

• apparel
• nonpareil
• carol