fathom etymology

Etymology

The word "fathom" derives from the Old English word "fæðm," which originally meant "an embrace." It was used to measure the length of a person's arms outstretched.

Meaning

A fathom is a unit of length equal to 6 feet or 1.83 meters. It is primarily used in marine and aviation contexts for measuring depths and altitudes.

Origin

The Old English word "fæðm" evolved from the Proto-Germanic word "faðmaz," which also meant "embrace." This word is related to the Proto-Indo-European root "pet-," meaning "to spread" or "to extend."

Usage

In the context of marine navigation, a fathom is used to measure the depth of water and is often expressed as "fathoms" or "fms." For example, a depth of 10 fathoms would be written as "10 fms."

In aviation, fathoms are used to measure altitudes, particularly in the context of seaplanes and other aircraft operating over water.

Interesting Facts

• The average human height is approximately 5 feet 9 inches, which is slightly less than 6 feet or 1 fathom.
• The term "six feet under" is often used to refer to being buried, as 6 feet is the traditional depth of a grave.
• The word "fathom" can also be used figuratively to mean "to understand" or "to comprehend" something.

fathom relate terms

• embrace

  Etymology Embrace Old French embracier from Late Latin imbracchiare from Latin im in

• brachio

  Etymology Latin bracchium arm Meaning A large muscular arm or limb in animal

• clip

  Etymology Middle English clippen probably derived from Old Norse klippa meaning to

• fathom

  Etymology The word fathom derives from the Old English word fæðm which originally

• fathomable

  Etymology The word fathomable comes from the Middle English word fathomable which i

• fathom

  Etymology The word fathom derives from the Old English word fæðm which originally

• sound

  Etymology From Middle English sound from Old English sund from Proto Germanic sunðaz

• bottom

  Etymology Bottom derives from the Old English word botm which meant the lowest par

• clip

  Etymology Middle English clippen probably derived from Old Norse klippa meaning to

• brace

  Etymology The word brace has several etymological roots Middle English brace de

• cape

  Etymology The word cape originates from the Middle English cappe which itself is de

• pace

  Etymology The word pace has multiple origins but the most common is from the Latin wo

• measure

  Etymology Measure derives from Old French mesure which ultimately originated from th

• quantify

  Etymology Latin quantus how much ficare to make Ultimately from Proto Indo E

• understand

  Etymology is the study of the origin and history of words It involves tracing the develop

• yard

  Etymology of yard The word yard has several etymological origins Old English gea