Definition of 'bloom'
Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular present tense blooms
, present participle blooming
, past tense, past participle bloomed
1. countable noun
A bloom is the flower on a plant.
[literary, technical]
2.
See in bloom
3. verb
When a plant or tree blooms, it produces flowers. When a flower blooms, it opens.
4. verb
5. uncountable noun [oft a NOUN]
If something such as someone's skin has a bloom, it has a fresh and healthy appearance.
6. See also blooming
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
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Word Frequency
bloom in British English 1
noun
1.
a blossom on a flowering plant; a flower
2.
the state, time, or period when flowers open (esp in the phrases in bloom, in full bloom)
3.
open flowers collectively
a tree covered with bloom
4.
6.
7.
any coating similar in appearance, such as that on new coins
8. ecology
verb (mainly intr)
10.
(of flowers) to open; come into flower
11.
to bear flowers; blossom
12.
to flourish or grow
13.
to be in a healthy, glowing, or flourishing condition
14. (transitive) physics
to coat (a lens) with a thin layer of a substance, often magnesium fluoride, to eliminate surface reflection
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Word origin
C13: of Germanic origin; compare Old Norse blōm flower, Old High German bluomo, Middle Dutch bloeme; see blow3Word Frequency
bloom in British English 2
noun
1. See also billet1 (sense 2)
verb
2. (transitive)
to convert (an ingot) into a bloom by rolling or forging
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Word origin
Old English blōma lump of metal
Word Frequency
bloom in American English 1
noun
1.
a flower; blossom
2.
flowers collectively, as of a plant
3.
the state or time of flowering
5.
a youthful, healthy glow (of cheeks, skin, etc.)
7.
any similar coating, as on new coins
verb intransitive
9.
to bear a flower or flowers; blossom
10.
to reach a prime condition, as in health, vigor, beauty, perfection, etc.; flourish
11.
to glow with color, health, etc.
verb transitive
12. Archaic
to cause to bloom, flower, or flourish
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Word Frequency
bloom in American English 2
noun
2.
a thick bar of iron or steel obtained by rolling or hammering an ingot
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Word origin
OE bloma, lump of metal
Word Frequency
bloom in American English 1
(bluːm)
noun
1.
the flower of a plant
2.
flowers collectively
the bloom of the cherry tree
4.
a flourishing, healthy condition; the time or period of greatest beauty, artistry, etc
the bloom of youth
the bloom of Romanticism
5.
a glow or flush on the cheek indicative of youth and health
a serious illness that destroyed her bloom
6.
the glossy, healthy appearance of the coat of an animal
7.
a moist, lustrous appearance indicating freshness in fish
8.
redness or a fresh appearance on the surface of meat
9. Botany
a whitish powdery deposit or coating, as on the surface of certain fruits and leaves
the bloom of the grape
10.
any similar surface coating or appearance
the bloom of newly minted coins
11.
any of certain minerals occurring as powdery coatings on rocks or other minerals
13.
the sudden development of conspicuous masses of organisms, as algae on the surface of a lake
15. See take the bloom off
16. See the bloom is off
intransitive verb
17.
to produce or yield blossoms
19.
to be in or achieve a state of healthful beauty and vigor
a sickly child who suddenly bloomed
a small talent that somehow bloomed into major artistry
20.
to glow with warmth or with a warm color
transitive verb
SYNONYMS 1. blossom. 3. efflorescence. 4. freshness, glow, flush; vigor, prime. 16, 17. effloresce.21.
to cause to yield blossoms
22.
to make bloom or cause to flourish
a happiness that blooms the cheek
25. Optics
to coat (a lens) with an antireflection material
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Derived forms
bloomless adjective
Word origin
[1150–1200; (n.) ME blom, blome ‹ ON blōm, blōmi; c. Goth blōma lily, G Blume flower; akin to blow3; (v.) ME blomen, deriv. of the n.]Word Frequency
bloom in American English 2
(bluːm)
Engineering
noun
1.
a piece of steel, square or slightly oblong in section, reduced from an ingot to dimensions suitable for further rolling
transitive verb
3.
to make (an ingot) into a bloom
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Word origin
[bef. 1000; repr. AL, AF blomes (pl.), OE blōma mass of iron; perh. akin to bloom1]Examples of 'bloom' in a sentence
bloom
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In other languages
bloom
British English: bloom
NOUN /bluːm/
A bloom is the flower on a plant.
...the sweet fragrance of the white blooms.
British English: bloom
VERB /bluːm/
When a plant or tree blooms, it produces flowers. When a flower blooms, it opens.
This plant blooms between May and June.
Browse alphabetically
bloom
Related terms of
bloom
Source
Definition of bloom from the Collins English Dictionary
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