/ əˈbɪs; NAmE / noun
[ usually sing. ] ( formal or literary ) a very deep wide space or hole that seems to have no bottom :
Ahead of them was a gaping abyss.
( figurative )
an abyss of ignorance / despair / loneliness
( figurative )
The country is stepping back from the edge of an abyss.
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WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English (in the sense infernal pit ): via late Latin from Greek abussos bottomless, from a- without + bussos depth.