groom
- 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.
- 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
Synonyms
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comRelated Words
bridegroom, suitor, educate, comb, prim, tend, spouse, husband, benedict, hostler, equerry, prime, coach, drill, curry, tidy, refresh, sleek, train, refineExamples from the Web for groom
Contemporary Examples
Women threw rice on peshmerga fighters, a tradition practiced at Syrian weddings when neighbors welcome the bride and groom.
Remembering Kobani Before The SiegeMustafa 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.
The charges against the groom as well as against a bridesmaid were dropped.
And Republicans have just founded a new organization to groom minorities in the party.
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 DebunkedOlga M. Davidson
September 13, 2012
Historical Examples
Your manner reduced me to a groom who opened your carriage door.
The SpendersHarry Leon Wilson
The honeymoon will be spent at the town-house of the groom, in York Terrace.
The SpendersHarry Leon Wilson
And Otto ran away barely in time to catch the groom, who was going for the hay.
Rico and WiseliJohanna 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 UnderdogF. Hopkinson Smith
groom
- 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
- 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
Word Origin
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."
v.
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.