groom

/ɡɹuːm/

groom

English Noun Top 4,519

American (Lessac) (medium)

Female 0.7s

American (Amy) (medium)

Female 0.7s

American (Ryan) (medium)

Male 0.4s

Definition

A man who is about to marry.

Etymology

1604, short for bridegroom (“husband-to-be”), from Middle English brydgrome, alteration (with intrusive r) of earlier bridegome (“bridegroom”), from Old English brȳdguma (“bridegroom”), from brȳd (“bride”) + guma (“man, hero”). In Middle English, the second element was re-analyzed as or influenced by grom, grome (“attendant”). Guma derives from Proto-Germanic *gumô (“man, person”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰǵʰm̥mō; it is cognate to Icelandic gumi (cf. Icelandic brúðgumi) and Norwegian gume and, ultimately, human.