chasm
/ˈkæzəm/ noun, proper noun
Forms chasms chasma
- noun (geology, planetology) A deep, steep-sided rift, gap or fissure; a gorge or abyss.
- noun (by extension) A large difference of opinion.
- proper noun A locality and provincial park in the Thompson-Nicola Regional District, British Columbia, Canada.
Etymology
From Latin chasma, from Ancient Greek χάσμα (khásma, “abyss, cleft”). Doublet of chasma. Compare schism. Displaced native Old English swelh and Old English elh.
Webster’s 1913
- noun A deep opening made by disruption, as a breach in the earth or a rock; a yawning abyss; a cleft; a fissure.
- noun A void space; a gap or break, as in ranks of men. Memory . . . fills up the chasms of thought. Addison.
Etymology [L. chasma, Gr. Chaos.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “chasm”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details