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

According to the official release, both the bride and groom sported Christian Dior Haute Couture, Christian Louboutin shoes, and Cartier jewelry—and neither had a bridal party.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 7, 2026

Torches lit the way for the 30-year-old groom, known by the callsign Ice, and the 32-year-old bride, Khomochka, through the woods to the altar as fellow soldiers formed a guard of honour.

From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026

"I hope today's outcome sends a clear message that those who seek to groom and exploit vulnerable children will be relentlessly pursued," he said.

From BBC ● Aug. 3, 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

On the third day, she made the designer icing for the rosebuds and put the little bride and groom on top.

From "The View From Saturday" by E.L. Konigsburg

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

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

India brides and grooms prepping with weight-loss drugs.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 7, 2026

As the grooms watched and fretted, Smith waved the exercise rider on.

From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand

"I think any person who comes in will have a set of skills and experience, but must be also groomed for the role."

From BBC ● Aug. 23, 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

“Individuals who lived, fed, groomed and patrolled together for years became targets of lethal attacks on the basis of their new group membership,” the authors reported recently in the journal Science.

From Salon ● Apr. 23, 2026

He took off his police cap and she saw that his hair was short and stiff, groomed with hair tonic.

From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende

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

Introduced to ease prison overcrowding, on 4 August the policy was updated so people sentenced for rape, serious child sex offences and grooming would not be eligible for early release.

From BBC ● Aug. 23, 2026

Samoyeds, which originated in Siberia as reindeer-herding dogs for the Samoyedic people, have a unique “double coat” that requires professional grooming every six to eight weeks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026

She gestured to Paganini, who was grooming his ears.

From "The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street" by Karina Yan Glaser

Related Words

• comb
• educate
• prim
• tend