noun · neutral
trough
/traʊf/TROUGH
task1
the lowest point or level reached
Examples
“The index hit a trough in 2009 after the crisis.”
“Consumer confidence reached a trough last quarter.”
“After the trough the figures slowly recovered.”
Band 8 sentence
“Following a sharp decline in 2008, profits reached a trough in early 2009 before a gradual recovery.”
Collocations
- reach a trough / hit a trough
- trough in (a year/month)
Word family
trough noun
Common mistakes
through→trough
a lowest point→the lowest point / a low point
Say it for a higher band
5low→6bottom→7+trough
Synonyms
low point
bottom
Easily confused
through
“She walked through the park.”
Related words
Learn this word with the rest of its set, and get reminded at the right time.
In Peaks & troughs
Learn it with its set