groom

American  

[groom, groom] / grum, grʊm /

noun

• grooms
  plural

1. a bridegroom.

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

3. any of several officers of the English royal household.

4. Archaic. a manservant.

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verb (used with object)

• grooms,
  present (3rd person singular)
• groomed,
  past participle,  past
• grooming
  present participle

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

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

3. 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.

4. to prepare for a position, election, etc..

   Both of these young goalies are being groomed for roles in the NHL.

5. 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.

6. (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.

groom British  

/ ɡruːm, ɡrʊm /

noun

1. a person employed to clean and look after horses

2. See bridegroom

3. any of various officers of a royal or noble household

4. archaic a male servant or attendant

5. archaic a young man

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verb

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

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

3. to train or prepare for a particular task, occupation, etc

   to groom someone for the Presidency

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

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• groomer
  noun
• grooming
  noun
• regroom
  verb (used with object)
• groomish
  adjective
• nongrooming
  adjective
• ungroomed
  adjective
• groomishly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• grooms
  plural

Participles

• grooming
  present
• groomed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• groom
  simple
• grooms
  simple
• have groomed
  perfect
• has groomed
  perfect
• am grooming
  progressive
• are grooming
  progressive
• is grooming
  progressive
• have been grooming
  perfect progressive
• has been grooming
  perfect progressive

Past

• groomed
  simple
• had groomed
  perfect
• was grooming
  progressive
• were grooming
  progressive
• had been grooming
  perfect progressive

Future

• will groom
  simple
• will have groomed
  perfect
• will be grooming
  progressive
• will have been grooming
  perfect progressive

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.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

groom grooms groomed grooming

And they use tools -- research last year showed a critically endangered population of orcas in the Salish Sea breaking off pieces of seaweed to rub and groom each other.

From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026

And what any bride and groom hope for, a party atmosphere.

From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026

During the tournament, a new tradition has also emerged: Fans gather and toss a person into the air, as is traditionally done with a groom at a wedding.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 5, 2026

We can also reveal that another groom from the same series had a past conviction for affray, which we understand his on-screen bride was not made aware of.

From BBC ● Jun. 13, 2026

They groom each other and eat and sleep, then groom each other some more.

From "The One and Only Ivan" by Katherine Applegate

One of successful grooms, 43-year-old clothes trader Rabiu Yusuf, agreed the process of applying to be married had gone smoothly for him.

From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026

Some grooms are taking it a step further, parlaying their weddings into personal branding.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 19, 2026

He grooms them, administers their daily doses of medicine by hand and recognizes their individual personalities.

From Salon ● May 17, 2026

India brides and grooms prepping with weight-loss drugs.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 7, 2026

The grooms could circle the barn and come around again, and there he’d be, exactly as he was before.

From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand

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

Also depends on how you were groomed or how you came into the situation.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 18, 2026

After defending Jackson many times previously, including on Oprah Winfrey’s talk show in 2010, all five of the family’s adult children say they were groomed to protect him.

From Salon ● May 14, 2026

The regent explained that I was being groomed to be a counselor to the king and that he hoped the reverend would take a special interest in me.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

Last week, Burnham also ordered an "urgent" review to identify any grooming gang members who may be eligible to be freed from jail early.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

Around 5,000 people are expected to be released under the sentencing changes, down from 6,000 after exemptions were previously announced for those convicted of the most serious crimes including rape, child sex offences and grooming.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

On Monday, the government announced revised plans that would exclude prisoners who had committed rape, grooming, and serious child sex offences from an early release scheme for England and Wales.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

A man could be well turned-out, but if he made too much of his wardrobe or grooming, he overstepped the bounds of good taste.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026

Among their favorite activities are eating, grooming themselves, climbing, running, spinning, taking a nap and being petted.

From "The World According to Humphrey" by Betty G. Birney

Related Words

• comb
• educate
• prim
• tend