groom
Americannoun
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grooms
plural
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a bridegroom.
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a man or boy in charge of horses or the stable.
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any of several officers of the English royal household.
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Archaic. a manservant.
verb (used with object)
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grooms,
present (3rd person singular)
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groomed,
past participle, past
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grooming
present participle
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to tend carefully as to person and dress; make neat or tidy.
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to clean, brush, and otherwise tend (a horse, dog, etc.).
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to prepare (a trail) for a specific use, such as skiing, biking, or hiking.
The resort is currently grooming 7 miles of cross-country ski trails for your enjoyment this winter.
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to prepare for a position, election, etc..
Both of these young goalies are being groomed for roles in the NHL.
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to condition or manipulate (a victim) emotionally over time, as through friendship, gifts, flattery, etc., in order to entrap the person in a sexually abusive or predatory relationship.
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(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.
noun
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a person employed to clean and look after horses
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See bridegroom
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any of various officers of a royal or noble household
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archaic a male servant or attendant
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archaic a young man
verb
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to make or keep (clothes, appearance, etc) clean and tidy
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to rub down, clean, and smarten (a horse, dog, etc)
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to train or prepare for a particular task, occupation, etc
to groom someone for the Presidency
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to win the confidence of (a victim) in order to a commit sexual assault on him or her
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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groomernoun
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groomingnoun
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regroomverb (used with object)
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groomishadjective
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nongroomingadjective
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ungroomedadjective
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groomishlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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groomsimple
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groomssimple
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have groomedperfect
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has groomedperfect
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am groomingprogressive
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are groomingprogressive
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is groomingprogressive
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have been groomingperfect progressive
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has been groomingperfect progressive
Past
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groomedsimple
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had groomedperfect
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was groomingprogressive
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were groomingprogressive
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had been groomingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of groom
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English grom, grome, groum “infant boy, boy, youth, groom”; further origin obscure; akin to grow
Explanation
To groom means to take care of the appearance, whether it's plucking eyebrows or combing hair. When you spend over an hour grooming in the bathroom, combing your mustache and buffing your nails, you drive everyone else who needs to use the bathroom crazy. You can groom something besides a person. Resorts groom their golf courses and ski runs. If you own a horse, you groom it every day. Animals groom each other by picking off insects and licking at fur. You can also use groom in regards to the mind. If you are being groomed for a certain spot or position, you are being prepared to take over its activities and responsibilities. Let's hope that you will someday be groomed for a spot on an executive board. And last but not least, the man getting married at a wedding is the groom.
Vocabulary lists containing groom
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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.
See Examples For:
Under a microscope, researchers watched the sea spider wrap these appendages around its legs and use comb-like spines to groom and clean its body.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 25, 2026
Photos showed dancing under disco balls, a white cake topped with figurines of a bride and groom and Donald Trump Jr. holding his new wife in his arms as fireworks erupt in the background.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
Trinidad also drives to homes and events when invited — he recently went to a wedding and gave haircuts to the groom and his friends.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026
The ceremony, per tabloid reporting, was interminable, with both bride and groom delivering a 20-minute set of vows.
From Salon ● Jul. 9, 2026
“If the groom is not supposed to see the bride, how do they get married?”
From "Krik? Krak!" by Edwidge Danticat
The grooms lined up beside them in navy blue suits and deep-red ties.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 27, 2026
Several other pairs of twins were in attendance - perhaps unsurprising as the grooms are well known locally for promoting twin culture.
From BBC ● Jun. 22, 2026
Louis Hernandez and Matt Giardiello, Brooklynites who got married in New York’s Hudson Valley last Friday during Game 2, have some lessons for Saturday’s grooms and brides.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
He grooms them, administers their daily doses of medicine by hand and recognizes their individual personalities.
From Salon ● May 17, 2026
They went around, one after the other, their heads down, the grooms leading them.
From "A Farewell To Arms" by Ernest Hemingway
A golden generation of Weston McKennie, Christian Pulisic, Tyler Adams and Timothy Weah had been groomed for years for this one tournament.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026
"The National Intelligence Service currently assesses that Kim Ju Ae is being groomed as the successor and understands she has a younger sibling of unknown gender," the agency said, reaffirming its conclusion on succession.
From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026
He trimmed and groomed his beard, and made sure his short hair was neatly cut.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Like Bukele, de la Espriella sports a meticulously groomed beard.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 2, 2026
It was too well groomed, its coat too sleek for a wild horse.
From "The Son of Neptune" by Rick Riordan
Across from the main entertaining spaces sits a six-stall barn complete with an executive office, staff quarters, three grooming stations, a feed kitchen, and storage.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 21, 2026
Beware of lilies, which are toxic to cats; even chewing the leaves or licking pollen off their fur while grooming can be fatal.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026
Is male grooming changing or the same as it always was?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026
The case of grooming gang ringleader Shabir Ahmed, who Pakistan has resisted attempts to deport, is one example.
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026
So it continued, a slow courtship on both parts, until within a few minutes, Otto was grooming them, the boys giggling as he ran his fingers over their scalps.
From "Endangered" by Eliot Schrefer
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
