broom

/broohm, broom/, n.

1. an implement for sweeping, consisting of a brush of straw or stiff strands of synthetic material bound tightly to the end of a long handle.

2. any shrubby plant belonging to the genus Genista or the genus Cytisus, of the legume family, esp. C. scoparius, common in Western Europe on uncultivated ground and having long, slender branches bearing yellow flowers.

3. Building Trades. the crushed and spread part at the head of a wooden pile after driving.

v.t.

4. to sweep: Broom the porch.

5. to splinter or fray mechanically.

6. to crush and spread the top of (a piling, tent peg, etc.) by pounding or driving with a hammer or the like.

7. to brush (freshly poured concrete) with a broom to give a nonskid surface, as to walks or driveways.

v.i.

8. (of a piling, tent peg, etc.) to be crushed and spread at the top from being driven.

[bef. 1000; ME brome, OE brom; c. D braam bramble, G Bram broom]

Pronunciation. BROOM and ROOM occur with the vowel /ooh/ of fool or /oo/ of book. The first is the more common. The pronunciation with the /oo/ of book is found in New England, eastern Virginia, and South Carolina and Georgia alongside the /ooh/ pronunciation. Farther west the /ooh/ pronunciation is more common, though the pronunciation with the vowel of book occurs everywhere with no marked regional or social pattern.

Both pronunciations occur in British standard and folk speech. The pronunciation with /oo/ predominates in the eastern counties, /ooh/ everywhere else. London lies on the boundary between the two types, and it is thus not surprising that /oo/ is found in the United States in the coastal areas that had long and close contact with England.

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In botany, any of several leguminous shrubs or small trees of the genus Cytisus, native to temperate regions of Europe and western Asia.

They are cultivated widely, chiefly for their attractive flowers. The compound leaves have three leaflets. The solitary or clustered yellow, purple, or white flowers resemble pea flowers. The fruit is a flat pod. A common, almost leafless species is C. scoparius, a shrub with bright yellow flowers often grown for erosion control in warm climates. Butcher's broom (Ruscus aculeatus) is a shrub of the lily family with small whitish flowers and red berries.

Broom (Cytisus beanii)

Valerie Finnis

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▪ plant

 any of several shrubs or small trees of the genus Cytisus, of the pea family (Fabaceae), native to temperate regions of Europe and western Asia. They are also cultivated in other regions, chiefly for their attractive flowers. The compound leaves have three leaflets. The yellow, purple, or white flowers are solitary or in small clusters. The fruit is a flat pod. A common, almost leafless species is C. scoparius, a shrub with bright yellow flowers; it is often grown for erosion control in warm climates. When ripe, its pods burst, scattering the seeds. Butcher's broom, Ruscus aculeatus, is a shrub of the lily family (Liliaceae) with small whitish flowers and red berries.

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