Gloss · Words · Zenith vs nadir
Zenith vs nadir
Zenith is the highest point. Nadir is the lowest. They come as a pair.
The difference
Both began in astronomy, borrowed from Arabic by way of medieval Latin. The zenith is the point of the sky directly overhead; the nadir is the point directly beneath your feet, on the far side of the earth. In ordinary use they are the peak and the bottom of anything that rises and falls: a career, a reputation, a fever. Zenith is the more common of the two, which is why nadir gets looked up.
Zenith
The highest point; the top of someone’s success or of the sun’s path.
The band reached its zenith in 1994.
Nadir
The lowest point.
The scandal marked the nadir of his career.
Which one to use
At the top, zenith. At the bottom, nadir. Neither is a plateau.
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