どん底

Japanese
Kanji in this term
底
そこ > ぞこ
Grade: 4
kun’yomi

Etymology

Compound of どん (don-, intensifier, derived from and expressing a greater degree than ど (do)) +‎ 底 (soko, “the bottom of something, the depths of something”).[1][2] The soko changes to zoko as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

Pronunciation

    Noun

    どん底(ぞこ) • (donzoko) 

    1. (both literally and figuratively) absolute lowest point, rock bottom, very bottom
    2. very bad situation, catastrophic situation, the abyss
      貧(びん)乏(ぼう)のどん底(ぞこ)
      binbō no donzoko
      extreme poverty, the rock bottom of poverty

    References
    1. Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
    2. Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
    3. NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute, editor (1998), NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 [NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: NHK Publishing, →ISBN
    4. Kindaichi, Kyōsuke et al., editors (1997), 新明解国語辞典 [Shin Meikai Kokugo Jiten] (in Japanese), Fifth edition, Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
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