abîme

• abyme (archaic)
• abime (1990 spelling reform)

Inherited from Old French abisme, inherited from Late Latin *abyssimus, a superlative of Latin abyssus (“bottomless pit”), from Ancient Greek ἄβυσσος (ábussos). Compare Spanish and Portuguese abismo. Doublet of abysse.

• IPA^(key): /a.bim/

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abîme m (plural abîmes) (traditional spelling)

1. abyss, chasm
2. bottom of a chasm or valley
3. (literary) infiniteness of thought
4. (literary) superlative used with various abstraction and qualities; the climax or acme
5. (literary) hell
6. (heraldry) abyss of a shield, fess point

• Often used as if it was a pluralia tantum.

• abîmer

• “abîme” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

• amibe, iambe, ïambe