loom
verb /luːm/
/luːm/
Verb Forms
Idioms | present simple I / you / we / they loom | /luːm/ /luːm/ |
| he / she / it looms | /luːmz/ /luːmz/ |
| past simple loomed | /luːmd/ /luːmd/ |
| past participle loomed | /luːmd/ /luːmd/ |
| -ing form looming | /ˈluːmɪŋ/ /ˈluːmɪŋ/ |
- [intransitive] (+ adv./prep.) to appear as a large shape that is not clear, especially in a frightening way
- A dark shape loomed up ahead of us.
Extra Examples- Ghostly shapes loomed out of the fog in front of him.
- He loomed above her.
- The tower loomed over the city.
- A figure loomed in the doorway.
- Dizzying walls of rock loomed on either side of them.
- Something huge and black loomed out of the mist.
- [intransitive] (of something bad) to appear serious and and likely to happen soon
- There was a crisis looming.
Extra Examples- A new threat is now looming on the horizon.
- Further problems loomed ahead of us.
- The day of the election loomed ever closer.
Word Originverb mid 16th cent.: probably from Low German or Dutch; compare with East Frisian lōmen ‘move slowly’, Middle High German lüemen ‘be weary’.
Idioms
loom large
- to be frightening and make you worried because something seems hard to avoid
- The prospect of war loomed large.
- The issue looms large in political campaigns nationwide.