loom1 verbloom2 noun
loomloom1 /luːm/ ●○○ verb [intransitive] 
WORD ORIGINloom1
Origin:
1500-1600 Origin unknownVERB TABLE
loom
| Simple Form | ||
| Present | I, you, we, they | loom |
| he, she, it | looms | |
| Past | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | loomed |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have loomed |
| he, she, it | has loomed | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had loomed |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will loom |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have loomed |
| Continuous Form | ||
| Present | I | am looming |
| he, she, it | is looming | |
| you, we, they | are looming | |
| Past | I, he, she, it | was looming |
| you, we, they | were looming | |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have been looming |
| he, she, it | has been looming | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had been looming |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will be looming |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have been looming |
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- As the day of my interview loomed, I became increasingly nervous.
- The mountain loomed in front of us.
- The two countries believe that a crisis is looming.
- With the prospect of bankruptcy looming, life is getting tough for small businesses.
- A snow-covered hedge loomed up ahead of him and he made for the shelter of it.
- And the spectre of money laundering looms.
- Congressional elections loom next year; after that, maneuvering will start for the next presidential election.
- Directly behind him was a huge billboard with her picture looming big and brassy back at her.
- In consequence, untold numbers of sailors died when their destinations suddenly loomed out of the sea and took them by surprise.
- Mont Blanc, sixty miles distant, loomed massively present.
- The human factor also looms large in Bamford's presentation of the agency's strengths and weaknesses.
- We turned around, and after a few miles, an old building loomed into view.
Longman Language Activatorany one of the people in a group or in the world
to start to be seen or to suddenly be seen: · A face appeared at the window.appear from: · The manager suddenly appeared from his office.appear from behind/under etc: · A spider appeared from under the sofa.· Lois was about to knock when a woman appeared from around the side of the house.appear out of nowhere (=suddenly appear): · The dog appeared out of nowhere and began running alongside me.
to gradually start to be able to be seen - use this when you just start to see something, especially when it looks very small and difficult to see: · We had been on the boat for several hours when I noticed the coastline slowly becoming visible.· As the fog became thinner, the edges of buildings slowly became visible.
if something comes into view/sight , you can see it as you get closer to it or it gets closer to you - use this about things that are far away: · As the station came into sight, the train began to slow down.· Astronomers say that over the next few weeks the comet will be coming into view.
if the sun, the moon, or a star comes out , it appears in the sky: · The moon came out from behind a cloud.· As the sky grew darker, the stars came out one by one.
especially written to come out from a room, building or other enclosed space and start to be seen: emerge from: · Baxter emerged from the building and walked across the parking lot to a waiting car.· Brian, emerging from the bathroom, heard his wife speaking to someone at the front door.· At the airport, people stood behind a metal fence waiting for passengers to emerge from customs.
if a large person or thing looms or looms up , they suddenly appear in a way that makes you feel nervous or frightened, especially in a situation in which you cannot see clearly: · As we rounded the curve, the mountain loomed up in front of us.· They were walking through the alley when a man suddenly loomed out of the shadows.
to appear again after a short time of not being there or not being able to be seen: · Baines went back inside and reappeared a few moments later carrying an umbrella.
when something unpleasant is going to happen soon if a problem or difficulty looms , it is likely to happen soon: · As the day of my interview loomed, I became increasingly nervous.· With the prospect of bankruptcy looming, life is getting tough for small businesses.
if something dangerous or unpleasant hangs over you, it is likely to happen soon and this makes you feel worried and nervous: · The threat of nuclear war hangs over mankind.· With the court case hanging over us, we couldn't enjoy our vacation.
if problems, difficulties, arguments etc are brewing , they are starting to develop and will probably happen soon: · Union bosses fear that a strike is brewing in the coal industry.· A major political row over the European question had been brewing for some time.
an impending event or situation, especially an unpleasant one, is going to happen very soon: · Extra troops were usually a sign of an impending attack.· We were sorry to hear about Arlene's impending divorce.· warnings of an impending ecological disaster
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY
An economic crisis is looming on the horizon.COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
An economic crisis is looming on the horizon.· Things began to get more frantic as the deadline loomed.
(=start being seen in a way that is not clear, because the mist still covers it slightly)· Here and there trees loomed out of the mist.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADVERB· Presently the city of Kefalov loomed ahead.· The point is simply to flag problems that loom ahead.· Another sign loomed ahead and she frowned into the darkness, slowing up as she approached it.· Fathers also feel great emotional changes as their priorities change and added financial require-ments loom ahead.· She knew a miserable distaste for the day that loomed ahead.· I decided I would urge her to take some time off, what with the busy holiday season looming ahead.· By focusing on major issues that loom ahead, they create a forum for anticipatory thinking.
· Once confined with one's relatives, kinship and wealth loom large.
· He was helpless to defend himself against the terrible gleaming weapon in the fist of the menacing black figure looming over him.· No tall figure loomed over the till as she was serving, or appeared suddenly from behind the window displays.· FitzAlan stood up, immediately looming over her in the confines of the hut.· Palms loomed over cypresses and poinsettias, and brown men in straw hats trimmed the miles of green lawns.· Deserted watchtowers on stilts loom over major intersections.· He swaggered across and loomed over her, aggressive and protective at the same time.· A tower loomed over the roofless mansion, and beyond it, the spire of the Church of Ireland could be seen.· He stood, looming over the manager's desk.
· I feel it looming up behind me, breathing lightly on the nape of my neck.· As you descend, a mushroom-shaped structure looms up out of the murk.· The goodwill died with the fire and black shapes loomed up out of the dark.· The apartment loomed up around him as a kind of blur.· The House of Parliament loomed up and his heart began to thump.· Then the war loomed up black and sinister; my work was going to be interrupted.· Then, they were braking to a skidding halt as the towering framework of the fire escape loomed up out of the mist.
NOUN· However, the crisis that looms over the market minefield is not just one of deepening poverty but of ultimate environmental collapse.· While commercial flying is safer than ever, a future crisis is looming, the report warns.
· The election was looming: the chances of his holding Bath slight indeed.· In the latter, parishioners staked out positions and courted support as though an election loomed.· Towards the end of the decade, with elections looming, land distribution decreased in favour of greater emphasis on raising agricultural yields.· As the 1936 elections loomed, Roosevelt divided voters along economic lines to an extent rarely before seen.· Congressional elections loom next year; after that, maneuvering will start for the next presidential election.· But with the presidential election looming, the cries for protectionism from the ultra-conservative Buchanan are angering many business people.· So what was he to do now, with another election looming?· Unfortunately, election year is looming.
· Rose's face loomed suddenly, ecstatic and blank.· Among the faces looming out of the night, and through the fog of my exhaustion, my host was instantly recognizable.· The face loomed up out of the darkness and leered at her through the rain-soaked glass.· Why do faces loom up in this way?
· He was helpless to defend himself against the terrible gleaming weapon in the fist of the menacing black figure looming over him.· A daunting figure came looming out of the night.· No tall figure loomed over the till as she was serving, or appeared suddenly from behind the window displays.· The figure loomed over him and began to laugh, a cackling, hysterical laugh.
· Sadly, when I was there war was not the only dark cloud looming on the horizon.· Meanwhile, the absolute deadline of June 30, 1982, loomed on the horizon.· The two disputes he mentioned pale in comparison with others looming on the horizon.· Additionally, grain merchandisers bought corn futures this morning, suggesting additional sales could loom on the horizon, traders said.· Another kind of hazard was already looming on the horizon for the weaker peasant elements.
· Two other potential problems loom large.· The point is simply to flag problems that loom ahead.· This was one of two problems that loomed large at the time.· Presuming a job could be found, the problems of child care loomed.· Retrenchment in the world's biggest economies would have an impact on Britain, even if there were no domestic problems looming.· To you these might not always seem like severe difficulties, but for young people problems like these can loom large.
PHRASES FROM THE ENTRY
1[always + adverb/preposition] to appear as a large unclear shape, especially in a threatening wayloom up/out/ahead etc- My 40th birthday has loomed larger in my mind with each passing day.
- And four years after his death, one month short of his 101st birthday in 1993, he looms larger than ever.
- Blackmail has always loomed large in intelligence work, but never more so than today.
- However, now another objection begins to loom large.
- Our man at the Yard Historic landmark buildings loom large in Geoff Lewry's life.
- The formal processes of the law, indeed, do not loom large in the field officer's routine activities.
- The human factor also looms large in Bamford's presentation of the agency's strengths and weaknesses.
- Tragedy looms larger than farce in the United States today.
- While practical issues of meshing motherhood with modern life loom large, the greatest challenges are still psychological.
Suddenly a mountain loomed up in front of them.2if a problem or difficulty looms, it is likely to happen very soon: An economic crisis is looming on the horizon.3loom large to seem important, worrying, and difficult to avoid: Fear of failure loomed large in his mind.loom1 verbloom2 noun
loomloom2 noun [countable] a frame or machine on which thread is woven into cloth