English Explanatory Dictionary

bitter end

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. That part of an anchor cable which is abaft the bitts and thus remains inboard when a ship is riding at anchor.
  2. The final six fathoms (11 m) of anchor chain before the point of attachment in the chain locker of modern US naval vessels.
  3. The end of a long and difficult process.

Pronunciation

en-au-bitter end.ogg

Word forms

bitter end bitter ends

Etymology

The figurative usage is influenced by bitter (“unpleasant, arduous”). Indeed, the phrase has been reinterpreted by most today as bitter + end—compare bitter cold.

Related words

bitts fight to the finish last gasp the end of one's rope until the bitter end to the bitter end to the bitter end and beyond

Derived words

bitter-ender
This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.
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