groom

[groom, groom]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR groom ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a bridegroom.

a man or boy in charge of horses or the stable.

any of several officers of the English royal household.

Archaic. a manservant.

verb (used with object)

to tend carefully as to person and dress; make neat or tidy.

to clean, brush, and otherwise tend (a horse, dog, etc.).

to prepare for a position, election, etc.: The mayor is being groomed for the presidency.

(of an animal) to tend (itself or another) by removing dirt, parasites, or specks of other matter from the fur, skin, feathers, etc.: often performed as a social act.

Origin of groom

1175–1225; Middle English grom boy, groom; apparently akin to grow

Related formsgroom·er, noungroom·ish, adjectivegroom·ish·ly, adverbnon·groom·ing, adjectivere·groom, verb (used with object)un·groomed, adjective

Synonyms for groom

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR groom ON THESAURUS.COM

7. educate, train, coach, drill, tutor.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for groom

bridegroom, suitor, educate, comb, prim, tend, spouse, husband, benedict, hostler, equerry, prime, coach, drill, curry, tidy, refresh, sleek, train, refine

Examples from the Web for groom

Contemporary Examples of groom

Women threw rice on peshmerga fighters, a tradition practiced at Syrian weddings when neighbors welcome the bride and groom.
Remembering Kobani Before The Siege
Mustafa Abdi, Movements.Org, Advancing Human Rights
November 8, 2014
A couple on Merwedeplein got married on this day, and a friend captured the bride and groom leaving their apartment.
Anne Frank’s Amsterdam
Russell Shorto
October 12, 2013
The charges against the groom as well as against a bridesmaid were dropped.
Anthony Weiner Has Some Competition
Michael Daly
August 4, 2013
And Republicans have just founded a new organization to groom minorities in the party.
Homophobia in GOP Makes It Hard for Party to Compete Nationally
Peter Beinart
February 19, 2013
The groom has to give the bride a dowry to make the contract valid, and that dowry is for her and her alone to use as she wishes.
Mohammad Was Not a Womanizer, and Other Common Misconceptions About Islam Debunked
Olga M. Davidson
September 13, 2012

Historical Examples of groom

Your manner reduced me to a groom who opened your carriage door.
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
The honeymoon will be spent at the town-house of the groom, in York Terrace.
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
And Otto ran away barely in time to catch the groom, who was going for the hay.
Rico and Wiseli
Johanna Spyri
The horse was saddled and bridled; the groom held the stirrup, and up I got.
Tales And Novels, Volume 4 (of 10)
Maria Edgeworth
No well-regulated Thames inn can exist a week without a bride and groom.
The Underdog
F. Hopkinson Smith

British Dictionary definitions for groom

groom

noun

a person employed to clean and look after horses

See bridegroom

any of various officers of a royal or noble household

archaic a male servant or attendant

archaic, poetic a young man

verb (tr)

to make or keep (clothes, appearance, etc) clean and tidy

to rub down, clean, and smarten (a horse, dog, etc)

to train or prepare for a particular task, occupation, etcto groom someone for the Presidency

to win the confidence of (a victim) in order to a commit sexual assault on him or her

Derived Formsgroomer, noungrooming, noun

Word Origin for groom

C13 grom manservant; perhaps related to Old English grōwan to grow

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

Word Origin and History for groom

n.1

c.1200, grome "male child, boy;" c.1300 as "youth, young man." No known cognates in other Germanic languages. Perhaps from Old English *groma, related to growan "grow;" or from Old French grommet "servant" (cf. Middle English gromet "ship's boy," early 13c.). Meaning "male servant who attends to horses" is from 1660s.

n.2

husband-to-be at a wedding, c.1600, short for bridegroom, in which the second element is Old English guma "man."

1809, from groom (n.1) in its secondary sense of "male servant who attends to horses." Transferred sense of "to tidy (oneself) up" is from 1843; figurative sense of "to prepare a candidate" is from 1887, originally in U.S. politics. Related: Groomed; grooming.