- present participle of groom.
grooming
Americannoun
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the care of a body and its physical appearance, such as the personal hygiene routine of brushing one’s teeth or combing one’s hair, or the washing, brushing, etc., of a dog or horse.
Grooming your dogs at home is less expensive than taking them to the groomer, if you can stand the wet dog smell and the hair that ends up everywhere.
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the act or result of preparing a trail for a specific use, such as skiing, biking, or hiking.
Donation boxes have been posted at each trail to cover their grooming and other maintenance costs.
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the act or process of preparing someone to fill a position or role or to undertake an activity.
The grooming of new personnel to handle additional responsibilities requires team leaders who will act as mentors and share constructive feedback.
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an act or instance of engaging in behaviors or practices intended to gradually condition or emotionally manipulate a victim over time, as through friendship, gifts, flattery, etc., in order to entrap the person in a sexually abusive or predatory relationship.
The ongoing targeting and grooming of minors online shows that our safety protocols for children on the internet are insufficient.
Etymology
Origin of grooming
First recorded in 1810–20 grooming for def. 1 and in 1985–90 grooming for def. 4; groom ( def. ) + -ing 1 ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
You know a movie is adrift when you spend the running time admiring the grooming.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2026
Now, four decades later, many of the questions she was asking are finally at the heart of Baroness Anne Longfield's statutory inquiry into grooming gangs.
From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026
One victim, identified only as "Ruby", is being supported by The Maggie Oliver Foundation, set up by Maggie Oliver, an ex-police detective turned whistleblower over grooming gangs.
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026
Do you have a skin care or grooming ritual?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 29, 2026
Teeth squeals, hunching back on his haunches and grooming his paws.
From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
