groomed
|groomed|
🇺🇸
/ɡrumd/
🇬🇧
/ɡruːmd/
(groom)
prepare or clean
Etymology
'groom' originates from Middle English, specifically the word 'grom' or 'grome', where it meant 'male servant' or 'boy'.
'groom' changed from Old English 'guma' (meaning 'man') into Middle English 'grom/grome' (meaning 'servant' or 'stableman'), and from the noun sense of someone who tended horses it developed the verb sense 'to tend or clean animals' and later the wider sense 'to make neat' used in modern English.
Initially, it meant 'man' or 'male servant,' but over time it evolved into the action sense 'to tend, clean, or make neat' and the figurative sense 'to prepare or train someone.'
Meanings by Part of Speech
Verb 2
made (an animal or person) clean and neat; brushed or tidied (often a physical grooming action).
He groomed the dog every morning to keep its coat shiny.
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Verb 3
prepared or trained someone for a particular role or purpose (to ready someone for a future position or task).
She was groomed for a leadership role from an early age.
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Verb 4
befriended or cultivated a relationship with someone, often with the intention of exploiting them later (esp. in contexts of sexual abuse or fraud).
He had groomed the teenager online before the arrest.
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Last updated: 2025/10/11 15:02