Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition

Groom

Groom

,
Noun.
[Cf. Scot.
grome
,
groyme
,
grume
,
gome
,
guym
, man, lover, OD.
grom
boy, youth; perh. the r is an insertion as in E.
bridegroom
, and the word is the same as AS.
guma
man. See
Bridegroom
.]
1.
A boy or young man; a waiter; a servant; especially, a man or boy who has charge of horses, or the stable.
Spenser.
2.
One of several officers of the English royal household, chiefly in the lord chamberlain’s department;
as, the
groom
of the chamber; the
groom
of the stole.
3.
A man recently married, or about to be married; a bridegroom.
Dryden.
Groom porter
,
formerly an officer in the English royal household, who attended to the furnishing of the king's lodgings and had certain privileges.

Groom

,
Verb.
I.
[
imp. & p. p.
Groomed
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Grooming
.]
To tend or care for, or to curry or clean, as a, horse.

Definition 2024

groom

groom

English

Noun

groom ‎(plural grooms)

  1. A man who is about to become or has recently become part of a married couple. Short form of bridegroom.
Synonyms
Coordinate terms
Derived terms
Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English grom, grome ‎(“man-child, boy, youth”), of uncertain origin. Apparently related to Middle Dutch grom ‎(“boy”), Old Icelandic grómr, gromr ‎(“man, manservant, boy”), Old French gromme ‎(“manservant”), from the same Germanic root. Possibly from Old English *grōma, from Proto-Germanic *grōmô, related to *grōaną ‎(“to grow”), though uncertain as *grōaną was used typically of plants; its secondary meaning being "to turn green".

Alternate etymology describes Middle English grom, grome as an alteration of gome ‎(“man”) with an intrusive r (also found in bridegroom, hoarse, cartridge, etc.), with the Middle Dutch and Old Icelandic cognates following similar variation of their respective forms.

Noun

groom ‎(plural grooms)

  1. A person who cares for horses.
    • 2013 January 1, Brian Hayes, “Father of Fractals”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 1, page 62:
      Toward the end of the war, Benoit was sent off on his own with forged papers; he wound up working as a horse groom at a chalet in the Loire valley. Mandelbrot describes this harrowing youth with great sangfroid.
  2. One of several officers of the English royal household, chiefly in the lord chamberlain's department.
    the groom of the chamber; the groom of the stole
Synonyms
Translations

Verb

groom ‎(third-person singular simple present grooms, present participle grooming, simple past and past participle groomed)

  1. To attend to one's appearance and clothing.
  2. To care for horses or other animals by brushing and cleaning them.
  3. To prepare someone for election or appointment.
    • 2013 May 11, “What a waste”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8835, page 12:
      India is run by gerontocrats and epigones: grey hairs and groomed heirs.
  4. To prepare a ski slope for skiers
  5. (transitive) To attempt to gain the trust of a minor or adult with the intention of subjecting them to abusive or exploitative behaviour such as sexual abuse, human trafficking or sexual slavery.
Related terms
Translations

Etymology

1604, short for bridegroom ‎(“husband-to-be”), from Middle English brydgrome, bridegome ‎(“bridegroom”). That term derives from Old English brȳdguma ‎(“bridegroom”), from brȳd ‎(“bride”) + guma ‎(“man, hero”), but with the second element re-analyzed as or influenced by groom ‎(“attendant”). Guma derives from Proto-Germanic *gumô ‎(“man, person”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰǵʰm̥mō; it is cognate to Icelandic gumi and Norwegian gume and, ultimately, human.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ɡɹuːm/
  • Rhymes: -uːm

Similar Results