de profundis

American  

[dey proh-foon-dis] / deɪ proʊˈfʊn dɪs /

Latin.

1. out of the depths (of sorrow, despair, etc.).

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de profundis British  

/ deɪ prɒˈfʊndɪs /

adverb

1. out of the depths of misery or dejection

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Etymology

Origin of de profundis

from the first words of Psalm 130

Example Sentences

The inward man cannot, even from Darien peaks of observation or in his scrutiny de profundis, discover any vital or historical connection between the two faiths, Christianity and Buddhism.

From The Religions of Japan From the Dawn of History to the Era of Méiji by Griffis, William Elliot

Another bella divozione for the same end is to go up the steps of Ara Coeli on your knees reciting a requiem aeternum or a de profundis on each step.

From Rome by Malleson, Hope

De Profundis was de profundis indeed: Wilde was too good a dramatist to throw away so powerful an effect; but none the less it was de profundis in excelsis.

From Dark Lady of the Sonnets by Shaw, Bernard

When school is out they shall go together before the charnel-house and each one shall repeat with devotion a pater noster, an ave maria or the psalm de profundis and then return home quietly.

From The Life and Times of Ulric Zwingli by Hottinger, Johann Jakob

And finally, a great English poet had rushed down on Venice like a raven on a corpse, to croak out in lyric poetry—the first and last utterance of social man—the burden of a de profundis.

From Massimilla Doni by Balzac, Honoré de