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 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 Its scale — a thousand times more than a billion — is difficult to fathom for those of us who aren’t among the 3,363 billionaires that currently exist in our world. — Jess Weatherbed, The Verge, 12 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for fathom
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fathom
  1. plumb
  2. scale
  3. span
Verb
  • It's also plumbed ready to accept a washer/dryer, and a water heater is installed.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 7 Aug. 2026
  • Getty Images At first sight, the mechanical, electrical and plumbing engineering work involved in construction doesn’t seem a prime target for disruption from artificial intelligence.
    — David Prosser, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026
Definition of plumb
Verb
  • Ventyra has scaled the hardware down to true backpacking proportions.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Price will scale with add-ons, obviously, and these Design Lab gamepads tend to balloon pretty quickly.
    — Mitch Wallace, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of scale
Verb
  • The bridge was built to span a roughly 650-foot gap over Maroon Creek.
    — Spencer Wilson, CBS News, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Rome — Scorching temperatures and a long, dry summer have given locals and tourists alike a rare opportunity to see the remains of a 2,000-year-old bridge that once spanned the Tiber river that weaves through the center of Rome.
    — Barbie Latza Nadeau, CNN Money, 14 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 17 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on fathom

Nglish: Translation of fathom for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about fathom

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