nadir

noun

1. The point of the celestial sphere, directly opposite the zenith; inferior pole of the horizon; point of the celestial sphere directly under the place of observation.

   “[…] when we are Nadyr to the Sunne, we have no ſhadow […]”

2. (figuratively)The lowest point; time of greatest depression.

   “Near-synonym: dead”

   “[…] the seventh century is the nadir of the human mind in Europe […]”

   “In this nadir of poetic repute, when the only verse that most people read from one year’s end to the next is what appears on greetings cards, it is well for us to stop and consider our poets.”

   “The myth describes the dangerous moment of the nadir, the dead of winter, the moment when it is not known whether the world will be re-created and another cycle will bring on another spring.”

   “Trust had reached a nadir.”

3. The axis of a projected conical shadow; the direction of the force of gravity at a location; down.

   “The nadir of the sun is the axis of the shadow projected by the Earth.”

4. (archaic)An empty box added beneath a full one in a beehive to give the colony more room to expand or store honey.

verb

1. (transitive)To extend (a beehive) by adding an empty box at the base.

name

1. A male given name.
2. A surname.