A broom is a kind of brush with a long handle. You use a broom for sweeping the floor.
2. uncountable noun
Broom is a wild bush with a lot of tiny yellow flowers.
broom in British English
(bruːm, brʊm)
noun
1.
an implement for sweeping consisting of a long handle to which is attached either a brush of straw, bristles, or twigs, bound together, or a solid head into which are set tufts of bristles or fibres
2.
any of various yellow-flowered Eurasian leguminous shrubs of the genera Cytisus, Genista, and Spartium, esp C. scoparius
3.
any of various similar Eurasian plants of the related genera Genista and Spartium
4. new broom
verb
5. (transitive)
to sweep with a broom
Word origin
Old English brōm; related to Old High German brāmo, Middle Dutch bremme
broom in American English
(brum; brʊm)
noun
1.
any of a group of flowering shrubs (esp. genera Cytisus, Genista, and Spartium) of the pea family, often grown for their abundant, usually yellow, flowers
2.
a bundle of long, stiff fibers or straws (originally twigs of broom) fastened to a long handle, used for sweeping
verb transitive
3.
to sweep as with a broom
Word origin
ME & OE brom, brushwood < IE base *bh(e)rem-, to project, a point > UNRESOLVED CROSS REF, bramble
More idioms containing
broom
a new broom
Examples of 'broom' in a sentence
broom
More importantly, there is a new broom.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
Bring the great broom and sweep them away - they have drained far too much of our mental and political energy for 25 years.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
All people have to do is use a broom handle.
The Sun (2013)
That is where the broom cupboard comes in.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
They are suspicious of politicians who promise a new broom but sweep problems under the carpet.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
The broom handles were also scrubbed and stood out in the yard to dry.
Max Arthur Lost Voices of the Edwardians: 19011910 in the words of the Men & Women Who WereThere (2006)
The caretaker will be swept away by a new broom.
The Sun (2015)
Can she handle a car as well as she handles a curling broom?
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
At one point he was put in a broom cupboard in the ward because they had nowhere to put him.
The Sun (2010)
So where must the broom sweep?
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
Two other items may also be of use: the broom and the mop.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
And with that sweep of the broom, the whole sorry business was under the carpet.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
First, use a household broom to knock a hole in the ice.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
One of those might have been a broom cupboard, but you get the picture.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
The new broom at BlackBerry is not a soft broom.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
This is not over by a long broom handle yet, though.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
But why they can't just use a broom instead is beyond me.
The Sun (2006)
That's 73 an hour for pushing a broom.
The Sun (2009)
The best argument for regular changes of administration in Britain is the opportunity they offer to sweep a new broom through the messy machinery of government.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Did I see him pushing a broom outside Lidl the other day?
The Sun (2015)
With Lancaster preparing to wield a new broom, it may be that he has little option but to promote youth in this pivotal position.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
Word lists with
broom
shrub
In other languages
broom
British English: broom /bruːm; brʊm/ NOUN
A broom is a long-handled brush which is used to sweep the floor.
American English: broom
Arabic: مِكْنَسَة
Brazilian Portuguese: vassoura
Chinese: 扫帚
Croatian: metla
Czech: koště
Danish: kost
Dutch: bezem
European Spanish: escoba
Finnish: luuta
French: balais
German: Besen
Greek: σκούπα
Italian: scopa
Japanese: ほうき
Korean: 비
Norwegian: kost
Polish: miotła
European Portuguese: vassoura
Romanian: mătură
Russian: веник
Latin American Spanish: escoba
Swedish: sopkvast
Thai: ไม้กวาด
Turkish: süpürge
Ukrainian: мітла
Vietnamese: chổi
All related terms of 'broom'
new broom
Someone who has just started a new job and who is expected to make a lot of changes can be referred to as a new broom .
push broom
a wide brush pushed by means of a long handle , used for sweeping large areas
whisk broom
a small, short-handled broom for brushing clothes , etc.
broom closet
a small cupboard or closet for storing brooms , mops , etc
a new broom
someone who has just started a new job in an important position and is expected to make a lot of changes
broom cupboard
a small cupboard or closet for storing brooms , mops , etc
butcher's-broom
a liliaceous evergreen shrub, Ruscus aculeatus , that has stiff prickle-tipped flattened green stems, which resemble and function as true leaves. The plant was formerly used for making brooms
witches'-broom
a dense abnormal growth of shoots on a tree or other woody plant, usually caused by parasitic fungi of the genus Taphrina
dyer's-greenweed
a small Eurasian leguminous shrub , Genista tinctoria, whose yellow flowers yield a yellow dye , formerly mixed with woad to produce the colour Kendal green