Dictionary.com

Popular Searches

 Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

besom

American  
[bee-zuhm] / ˈbi zəm /

noun

  1. a broom, especially one of brush or twigs.

  2. broom.

besom 1 British  
/ ˈbiːzəm /

noun

  1. a broom, esp one made of a bundle of twigs tied to a handle

  2. curling a broom or brush used to sweep the ice in front of the stone to make it slide farther

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. to sweep with a besom

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
besom 2 British  
/ ˈbizəm, ˈbɪzəm /

noun

  1. dialect a derogatory term for a woman

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of besom

before 1000; Middle English besem, Old English bes ( e ) ma; cognate with Dutch bezem, German Besen

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.

There was a flicker like green fire in his eyes, and his beard stood out stiff as a great besom.

From Literature

He shall be swept with the besom of destruction.

From Project Gutenberg

They have need of a besom that sweep the house with a turf.

From Project Gutenberg

Arnold's store was situate in Lower Cove, where the sewing machine factory adjoining John E. Turnbull's sash factory stood, till the late besom of fire swept it away.

From Project Gutenberg

I will sweep it with the besom of destruction.

From Project Gutenberg

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.