I think it's Hamlet who talks of "topless Ilium", which meant it had very tall buildings (so high, they almost had no tops) but would be likely to get a laugh now. Although the word should mean "having no top", as in beheaded, it has only one widely-recognised meaning. Bottomless, though it could refer to someone with a very flat posterior, or no clothes below the waist, often means "very, very deep", as in "bottomless pit". Miss Pitt is naturally very offended at the use of this phrase. |