Abysmally
/əˈbɪz.mə.li/noun
In an extremely bad, poor, or severe way.
Did you know?Abysmally descends from abyss, which entered English through Old French from Late Latin abyssus and Greek abyssos, meaning “bottomless,” a word tied to the terrifying idea of the underworld depths.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*bʰew-
“to be, exist”
Ancient Greek
Greek
ábyssos (ἄβυσσος)
“bottomless, immeasurable depth”
Late Latin
Latin
abyssus
“the deep, the bottomless pit”
Old French
Old French
abisme / abysme
“a deep chasm or gulf”
Middle English
English
abisme
“a great depth or gulf”
Modern English
English
abysmally
“in a very bad or hopeless way”
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