Brooms

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An implement designed for sweeping that features a bundle of bristles fastened to a long handle, used for cleaning surfaces in various settings
2. A cleaning device consisting of a wide array of bristles joined to a sturdy handle, primarily utilized to clear dust and debris from floors
3. A tool combining stiff bristles bound to a long handle to sweep dirt and dust from floors or outdoor areas

Etymology: The plural "brooms" is simply the plural of "broom," the cleaning implement, so the story is really the story of "broom" itself. The most surprising twist is that the sweeping tool is named after a plant. Old English "brōm" meant brushwood, and the name came from the shrub whose twigs were bundled together to sweep floors. The plant itself, the common broom with its yellow flowers, shares that name, and the connection shows in how the word has long pointed to a bristly, thorny growth on the ground. The word traces back through Middle English "brom" to a Proto-West Germanic form meaning bramble, and it has relatives in Dutch "braam" and German "Braam" (bramble). Its older roots lie in an ancient idea of an edge, which also gave English "brim" and "brink," since brambles grow along the edges of fields and paths. For a long time, English speakers used "besom" for the sweeping tool. "Broom" gradually took over that job, and "besom" now survives only for one particular kind of broom made from twigs bound to a handle.

Synonyms: cleaners, brushes, sweepers, mops, utensils

Antonyms: dirt, mess, clutter, disorder, chaos