depth
noun /depθ/
/depθ/
Word Family
Idioms - deep adjective adverb
- deeply adverb
- deepen verb
- depth noun
enlarge image[countable, uncountable] the distance from the top or surface to the bottom of something; a particular distance down from the surface of something- depth of something What's the depth of the water here?
- the depth of a cut/wound/crack
- at a depth of something Water was found at a depth of 30 metres.
- to a depth of something They dug down to a depth of two metres.
- Many dolphins can dive to depths of 200 metres.
- in depth The oil well extended several hundreds of feet in depth.
- at depth The camera must be strong enough to resist the immense water pressure at depth.
- Most earthquakes occur at much shallower depths, usually less than 30 kilometres.
Extra ExamplesTopics Maths and measurementb2- The clam burrows in the sand to a considerable depth.
- These fish are found at a depth of over 100 metres.
- They go down to great depths below the surface.
- Water normally moves more slowly at shallower depths.
- species that live at considerable depth
- He tried to establish the depth of the wound.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- considerable
- great
- maximum
- …
- plumb
- plunge into
- reach
- …
- perception
- at depth
- at a depth of
- from a depth of
- …
- the depths
- the depths of the ocean
- the depths of the sea
- …
- [countable, uncountable] the distance from the front to the back of something
- The depth of the shelves is 30 centimetres.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- considerable
- great
- maximum
- …
- plumb
- plunge into
- reach
- …
- perception
- at depth
- at a depth of
- from a depth of
- …
- the depths
- the depths of the ocean
- the depths of the sea
- …
- [uncountable] the strength and power of feelings
- the depth of her love
- music of great emotional depth
Extra Examples- the unexpected depth of his feelings for her
- The demonstration showed the depth of feeling against the war.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- considerable
- great
- black
- …
- plumb
- plunge to
- reach
- …
- in depth
- out of your depth
- depths of
- …
- depth of emotion
- depth of feeling
- [uncountable, countable] (approving) qualities that give somebody/something extra character and make them/it interesting
- The separate storylines really add depth and personality to the characters.
- This film lacks the complexity or depth of his best movies.
- Her paintings reveal hidden depths (= unknown and interesting things about her character).
- [uncountable] (approving) the quality of knowing or understanding a lot of details about something; the ability to provide and explain these details
- a writer of great wisdom and depth
- His ideas lack depth.
- She has the ability to treat big subjects with breadth and depth.
- depth of something a job that doesn’t require any great depth of knowledge
- Younger students cannot be expected to have great depth of understanding.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- considerable
- great
- black
- …
- plumb
- plunge to
- reach
- …
- in depth
- out of your depth
- depths of
- …
- depth of emotion
- depth of feeling
- [countable, usually plural] the deepest, most extreme or serious part of something
- the depths of the ocean
- to live in the depths of the country (= a long way from a town)
- in the depths of winter (= when it is coldest)
- She was in the depths of despair.
- He gazed into the depths of her eyes.
Extra Examples- the abyssal depths of the ocean
- sharks lurking in the murky grey depths of the sea
- The rejection plunged her into the dark depths of despair.
- The ship's mast finally disappeared into the watery depths.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- considerable
- great
- maximum
- …
- plumb
- plunge into
- reach
- …
- perception
- at depth
- at a depth of
- from a depth of
- …
- the depths
- the depths of the ocean
- the depths of the sea
- …
- [uncountable] the strength of a colour
- Strong light will affect the depth of colour of your carpets and curtains.
- [uncountable] (specialist) the quality in a work of art or a photograph that makes it appear not to be flatTopics Artc1 see also deep
measurement
of feelings
of character/qualities
of knowledge
deepest part
of colour
picture/photograph
Word Originlate Middle English: from deep + -th, on the pattern of pairs such as long, length.
Idioms
be out of your depth
- (British English) to be in water that is too deep to stand in with your head above water
- If you can't swim, don't go out of your depth.
- I don't like going out of my depth in the sea.
- to be unable to understand something because it is too difficult; to be in a situation that you cannot control
- He felt totally out of his depth in his new job.
- The writer seems a little out of her depth when dealing with the emotional issue involved.
in depth
- in a detailed, careful and complete way
- I haven't looked at the report in depth yet.
- an in-depth study
- I studied phonology in depth at college.
plumb the depths of something
- to be or to experience an extreme example of something unpleasant
- His latest novel plumbs the depths of horror and violence.
- It was at that stage in her life when she plumbed the depths of despair.
- The team's poor performances plumbed new depths last night when they lost 10–2.
- The story plumbed the depths of tabloid journalism.
strength in depth
- the quality of being strong because you have a great variety of good people, ideas, etc. that can contribute to the success of something
- The French team does not have the strength in depth that the Australians have.