fathom

verb

Definition of fathomnext
as in to plumb
to measure the depth of (as a body of water) typically with a weighted line the pilot had to continually fathom the river, which drought conditions had lowered to unprecedented levels

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of fathom Of course, the average person can't fathom this. — Ralphie Aversa, USA Today, 25 June 2026 The amount of love and support from our Colorado Springs community and beyond is overwhelming to fathom. — Christa Swanson, CBS News, 22 June 2026 Mike Heller couldn’t fathom Hollywood Hardware’s sign going to waste. — Graham Womack, Sacbee.com, 20 June 2026 The idea struck me as hard to fathom. — Lila Shroff, The Atlantic, 18 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for fathom
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fathom
  1. plumb
  2. scale
  3. span
Verb
  • The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will soon join the ranks of iconic observatories like the Hubble and James Webb telescopes – plumbing the far reaches of the cosmos to answer some of life's greatest mysteries.
    — Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 25 Aug. 2026
  • It's also plumbed ready to accept a washer/dryer, and a water heater is installed.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of plumb
Verb
  • Here, the company’s founder and president of the board Carlos Pereira de Souza discusses DelRio’s competitive advantages, its plans to further scale its business and what sets Brazil apart as a sourcing destination.
    — SJ Studio, Footwear News, 2 Sep. 2026
  • As adoption scales from a pilot of a few hundred employees to thousands of AI agents running continuously across customer service, product data and supply chain workflows, token costs become a bigger deal.
    — Adrian Carr, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of scale
Verb
  • The company, founded in 1995, has grown through a combination of scale and acquisitions, building an operation that spans much of the food supply chain.
    — Brandon Gomez, CNBC, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Position players would have to stay on the IL for at least one full Monday-to-Monday span, with pitchers spanning two of those stretches.
    — Evan Drellich, New York Times, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of span

Browse Nearby Words

fathers (on)
fathom
fathomable
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Cite this Entry

“Fathom.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fathom. Accessed 4 Sep. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on fathom

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about fathom

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