Meaning in Context – What is the Meaning of ‘The Byss and the Abyss’?

meaningmeaning-in-context

this is a quote from Winston Churchill:

I had a feeling once about Mathematics, that I saw it all—Depth beyond depth was revealed to me
the Byss and the Abyss. I saw, as one might see the transit of Venus—or even the Lord Mayor’s
Show, a quantity passing through infinity and changing its sign from plus to minus. I saw exactly
how it happened and why the tergiversation was inevitable: and how the one step involved all the
others. It was like politics. But it was after dinner and I let it go.

What is the meaning of "the Byss and the Abyss" in this context?

Also, can you tell that I am reading the first sentences right?

one time I had a feeling about Mathematics. I thought I saw it all—Depth beyond depth was revealed to me.

Best Answer

According to the OED, byss is an obsolete word meaning the opposite of “abyss”. “A” is sometimes a prefix denoting negation. So I’m guessing Churchill means “infinite heights and infinite depths”. He’s being poetical, and comparing this to infinity and negative infinity.

It’s not a word you will ever see in normal speech or writing. It’s one of two words in that quote that I, as a well read native English speaker, have never, ever encountered.

Related Topic