loom

[ loom ]

See synonyms for loom on Thesaurus.com

noun

a hand-operated or power-driven apparatus for weaving fabrics, containing harnesses, lay, reed, shuttles, treadles, etc.
the art or the process of weaving.

the part of an oar between the blade and the handle.

verb (used with object)

to weave (something) on a loom.

Origin of loom

First recorded before 900; Middle English lome, lombe, lume “tool, implement, loom,” Old English lōma, gelōma; further origin uncertain

Other definitions for loom (2 of 4)

loom²

[ loom ]

verb (used without object)

to appear indistinctly; come into view in indistinct and enlarged form: The mountainous island loomed on the horizon.
to rise before the vision with an appearance of great or portentous size: Suddenly a police officer loomed in front of him.

to assume form as an impending event: A battle looms at the convention.

noun

a looming appearance, as of something seen indistinctly at a distance or through a fog: the loom of a moraine directly in their path.

Origin of loom

First recorded in 1590–1600; origin uncertain; perhaps akin to East Frisian lomen, Swedish lome “move slowly”

Other words for loom

2	rear, tower

See synonyms for loom on Thesaurus.com

Other definitions for loom (3 of 4)

loom³

[ loom ]

nounBritish Dialect.

loon¹.
a guillemot or murre.

Origin of loom

First recorded in 1670–80; from Old Norse lōmr “loon”

Other definitions for L.O.O.M. (4 of 4)

L.O.O.M.

abbreviation

Loyal Order of Moose.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use loom in a sentence

But the sunlight is threatening to fade and a three-and-a-half-hour river journey back to Kisangani looms.
The Congo's Forgotten Colonial Getaway | Nina Strochlic | December 18, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The teachers union looms large in this book, often as an evil force.
Your Local School Doesn’t Have to Suck | Michael S. Roth | December 17, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Minnesotans like it that way: The memory of Jesse Venture looms large in many memories.
What Al Franken’s Normcore Senate Race Can Teach Other Democrats | Ana Marie Cox | October 27, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Eric lobbies for an industry of benign usefulness, non-partisan in nature, and over which no cloud of serious controversy looms.
Up to a Point: In Defense of Lobbyists | P. J. O’Rourke | October 25, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Age also looms as a wildcard, with a generational divide further shaping the contours of the contest.
2016 Just May Be the GOP Base’s Year | Lloyd Green | August 4, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST

The gray pile looms above me, cold and forbidding, and on its crest stands the black figure leering at me in triumph.
Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist | Alexander Berkman
After it was exhausted, the great crime of rebellion looms up in all its terrible proportions.
Portrait and Biography of Parson Brownlow, The Tennessee Patriot | William Gannaway Brownlow
This is the true clerical question which looms darkly before the Spain of to-day.
Spanish Life in Town and Country | L. Higgin and Eugne E. Street
The mighty shadow which looms behind this tale of the Rebellion is that of the loyal Archbishop Tach.
Menotah | Ernest G. Henham
The Spitalfields weavers made several riots and broke the looms of those who refused to join in their demands.
The Political History of England - Vol. X. | William Hunt

British Dictionary definitions for loom (1 of 3)

loom¹

/ (luːm) /

noun

an apparatus, worked by hand (hand loom) or mechanically (power loom), for weaving yarn into a textile
the middle portion of an oar, which acts as a fulcrum swivelling in the rowlock

Origin of loom

C13 (meaning any kind of tool): variant of Old English gelōma tool; compare heirloom

British Dictionary definitions for loom (2 of 3)

loom²

/ (luːm) /

verb(intr)

to come into view indistinctly with an enlarged and often threatening aspect
(of an event) to seem ominously close

(often foll by over) (of large objects) to dominate or overhang

noun

a rising appearance, as of something far away

Origin of loom

C16: perhaps from East Frisian lomen to move slowly

British Dictionary definitions for loom (3 of 3)

loom³

/ (luːm) /

nounarchaic, or dialect

another name for diver (def. 3)
any of various other birds, esp the guillemot

Origin of loom

C17: from Old Norse lomr

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

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