depth

noun

Etymology: From Middle English depthe, from Old English *dīepþ (“depth”), from Proto-Germanic *diupiþō (“depth”), equivalent to deep + -th (abstract nominal suffix). Cognates Cognate with Scots deepth, Saterland Frisian Djüpte, West Frisian djipte (“depth; abyss, chasm”), Dutch diepte, German Low German Deepd, Luxembourgish Déift, Danish, Norwegian Bokmål dybde (“depth”), Faroese dýpd (“depth”), Icelandic dýpt, Norwegian Nynorsk djupt, dypt, and Gothic 𐌳𐌹𐌿𐍀𐌹𐌸𐌰 (diupiþa, “depth”); further to Old English diepe, German Tiefe, Icelandic dýpi, Norwegian Nynorsk djup, djupn, Swedish djup.

1. the vertical distance below a surface; the degree to which something is deep

   “Measure the depth of the water in this part of the bay.”

2. the distance between the front and the back, as the depth of a drawer or closet
3. the intensity, complexity, strength, seriousness or importance of an emotion, situation, etc.

   “The depth of her misery was apparent to everyone.”

   “The depth of the crisis had been exaggerated.”

4. lowness

   “the depth of a sound”

5. the total palette of available colors
6. the property of appearing three-dimensional

   “The depth of field in this picture is amazing.”

7. the deepest part (usually of a body of water)

   “The burning ship finally sunk into the depths.”

8. a very remote part.

   “Into the depths of the jungle...”

   “In the depths of the night,”

9. the most severe part

   “in the depth of the crisis”

   “in the depths of winter”

10. the number of simple elements which an abstract conception or notion includes; the comprehension or content
11. a pair of toothed wheels which work together
12. the perpendicular distance from the chord to the farthest point of an arched surface
13. the lower of the two ranks of a value in an ordered set of values
14. A set of more than one ciphertext enciphered with the same key.
15. An invariant of rings and modules, encoding information about dimensionality; see Depth (ring theory).