BOTTOM


Meaning of BOTTOM in English

/ ˈbɒtəm; NAmE ˈbɑːtəm/ noun , adjective , verb

■ noun

LOWEST PART

1.

[ C , usually sing. ] bottom (of sth) the lowest part of sth :

Footnotes are given at the bottom of each page.

I waited for them at the bottom of the hill.

The book I want is right at the bottom (= of the pile) .

OPP top

2.

[ C , usually sing. ] bottom (of sth) the part of sth that faces downwards and is not usually seen :

The manufacturer's name is on the bottom of the plate.

OF CONTAINER

3.

[ C , usually sing. ] bottom (of sth) the lowest surface on the inside of a container :

I found some coins at the bottom of my bag.

OF RIVER / POOL

4.

[ sing. ] the ground below the water in a lake, river, swimming pool, etc. :

He dived in and hit his head on the bottom.

END OF STH

5.

the ~ (of sth) [ sing. ] ( especially BrE ) the part of sth that is furthest from you, your house, etc. :

I went to the school at the bottom of our street.

There was a stream at the bottom of the garden.

LOWEST POSITION

6.

bottom (of sth) [ sing. ] the lowest position in a class, on a list, etc.; a person, team, etc. that is in this position :

a battle between the teams at the bottom of the league

You have to be prepared to start at the bottom and work your way up.

I was always bottom of the class in math.

OPP top

PART OF BODY

7.

[ C ] ( especially BrE ) the part of the body that you sit on

SYN backside , behind

CLOTHING

8.

[ C , usually pl. ] the lower part of a set of clothes that consists of two pieces :

a bikini bottom

a pair of pyjama / tracksuit bottoms

—compare top

OF SHIP

9.

[ C ] the lower part of a ship that is below the surface of the water

SYN hull

-BOTTOMED

10.

(in adjectives) having the type of bottom mentioned :

a flat-bottomed boat

IDIOMS

- at bottom

- be / lie at the bottom of sth

- the bottom drops / falls out (of sth)

- bottoms up!

- get to the bottom of sth

—more at heap noun , heart , pile noun , scrape verb , top noun , touch verb

■ adjective

[ only before noun ] in the lowest, last or furthest place or position :

the bottom line (on a page)

your bottom lip

the bottom step (of a flight of stairs)

on the bottom shelf

Put your clothes in the bottom drawer.

Their house is at the bottom end of Bury Road (= the end furthest from where you enter the road) .

in the bottom right-hand corner of the page

the bottom end of the price range

to go up a hill in bottom gear

We came bottom (= got the worst result) with 12 points.

IDIOMS

see bet verb

—see also rock-bottom

■ verb

PHRASAL VERBS

- bottom out

••

SYNONYMS

bottom

base ♦ foundation ♦ foot

These are all words for the lowest part of sth.

bottom

[usually sing.] the lowest part of sth:

Footnotes are given at the bottom of each page.

I waited for them at the bottom of the hill.

base

[usually sing.] the lowest part of sth, especially the part or surface on which it rests or stands:

The lamp has a heavy base.

foundation

[usually pl.] a layer of bricks, concrete, etc. that forms the solid underground base of a building:

to lay the foundations of the new school

foot

[sing.] the lowest part of sth:

At the foot of the stairs she turned to face him.

bottom or foot?

Foot is used to talk about a limited number of things: it is used most often with tree, hill / mountain, steps / stairs and page . Bottom can be used to talk about a much wider range of things, including those mentioned above for foot . Foot is generally used in more literary contexts.

PATTERNS AND COLLOCATIONS :

at / near / towards the bottom / base / foot of sth

on the bottom / base of sth

(a) firm / solid / strong base / foundation(s)

••

WORD ORIGIN

Old English botm , of Germanic origin; related to Dutch bodem bottom, ground and German Boden ground, earth.

Oxford Advanced Learner's English Dictionary.      Оксфордский английский словарь для изучающик язык на продвинутом уровне.