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gum

 - 14 dictionary results

gum

1[guhm] noun, verb, gummed, gum⋅ming.
–noun
1. any of various viscid, amorphous exudations from plants, hardening on exposure to air and soluble in or forming a viscid mass with water.
2. any of various similar exudations, as resin.
3. a preparation of such a substance, as for use in the arts or bookbinding.
4. chewing gum.
5. mucilage; glue.
6. rubber 1 (def. 1).
7. gum tree.
8. Philately. the adhesive by which a postage stamp is affixed. Compare o.g. (def. 1).
9. Informal. a rubber overshoe or boot.
–verb (used with object)
10. to smear, stiffen, or stick together with gum.
11. to clog with or as if with some gummy substance.
–verb (used without object)
12. to exude or form gum.
13. to become gummy.
14. to become clogged with a gummy substance.
15. gum up, Slang. to spoil or ruin.
16. gum up the works. work (def. 50).

Origin:
1350–1400; ME gomme < OF < VL *gumma, for L gummi, cummi < Gk kómmi


gumless, adjective
gumlike, adjective

gum

2[guhm] noun, verb, gummed, gum⋅ming.
–noun
1. Often, gums. Also called gingiva. the firm, fleshy tissue covering the alveolar parts of either jaw and enveloping the necks of the teeth.
–verb (used with object)
2. to masticate (food) with the gums instead of teeth.
3. to shape or renew the teeth of (a saw), as by grinding.
4. beat one's gums, Slang. to talk excessively or ineffectively.

Origin:
1275–1325; ME gome, OE gōma palate; akin to ON gōmr, G Gaumen palate

gum

3[guhm]
by gum, (used as a mild oath).

Origin:
1825–35; euphemism for God
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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gum 1   (gŭm)   
n.  
    1. Any of various viscous substances that are exuded by certain plants and trees and dry into water-soluble, noncrystalline, brittle solids.

    2. A similar plant exudate, such as a resin.

    3. Any of various adhesives made from such exudates or other sticky substance.

    4. Any of various trees of the genera Eucalyptus, Liquidambar, or Nyssa that are sources of gum. Also called gum tree.

    5. The wood of such a tree; gumwood.

  1. A substance resembling the viscous substance exuded by certain plants, as in stickiness.

    1. Any of various trees of the genera Eucalyptus, Liquidambar, or Nyssa that are sources of gum. Also called gum tree.

    2. The wood of such a tree; gumwood.

  2. Chewing gum.

v.   gummed, gum·ming, gums

v.   tr.
To cover, smear, seal, fill, or fix in place with or as if with gum.
v.   intr.
  1. To exude or form gum.

  2. To become sticky or clogged.

Phrasal Verb(s):
gum upTo ruin or bungle: gum up the works.

[Middle English gomme, from Old French, from Late Latin gumma, variant of Latin gummi, cummi, from Greek kommi, perhaps from Egyptian ḳmj-t.]
gum 2   (gŭm)   
n.  The firm connective tissue covered by mucous membrane that envelops the alveolar arches of the jaw and surrounds the bases of the teeth. Also called gingiva.
tr.v.   gummed, gum·ming, gums
To chew (food) with toothless gums.

[Middle English gome, from Old English gōma, palate, jaw.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

gum  (1)
"resin," c.1300, from O.Fr. gomme, from L.L. gumma, from L. gummi, from Gk. kommi "gum," from Egyptian kemai. The verb, in the transferred fig. sense of "spoil, ruin" (usually with up) is first recorded 1901, probably from the notion of machinery becoming clogged. As a shortened form of chewing gum, first attested 1842 in Amer.Eng.; gumshoe "plainclothes detective" is from 1906, from the rubber-soled shoes they wore (which were so called from 1863). Gum-tree (1676) was so called for the resin it exudes.

gum  (2)
"membranes of the mouth," from O.E. goma "palate," from a Gmc. source represented by O.N. gomi "palate," O.H.G. goumo, related to Lith. gomurys "palate," and perhaps from PIE *gheu- "to yawn" (cf. Gk. khaos, see chaos).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: 1gum
Pronunciation: 'g&m
Function: noun
: the tissue that surrounds the necks of teeth and covers the alveolar parts of the jaws;broadly : the alveolar portion of a jaw with its enveloping soft tissues

Main Entry: 2gum
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Forms: gummed; gum·ming
: to chew with the gums

Main Entry: 3gum
Function: noun
1 : any of numerous colloidal polysaccharide substances of plant origin that are gelatinous when moist but harden ondrying and are salts of complex organic acids —compare MUCILAGE
2 : any of various plant exudates(as a mucilage, oleoresin, or gum resin)
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

gum 1 (gŭm)
n.

  1. Any of various viscous substances that are exuded by certain plants and trees and dry into water-soluble, noncrystalline, brittle solids.

  2. A similar plant exudate, such as a resin.

  3. Any of various adhesives made from such exudates or other sticky substance.

gum 2
n.
The firm connective tissue covered by mucous membrane that envelops the alveolar arches of the jaw and surrounds the bases of the teeth. Also called gingiva. v. gummed, gum·ming, gums
To chew food with toothless gums.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Science Dictionary
gum 1   (gŭm)  Pronunciation Key 
Any of various sticky substances that are produced by certain plants and trees and dry into brittle solids soluble in water. Gums typically are colloidal mixtures of polysaccharides and mineral salts.
gum 2   (gŭm)  Pronunciation Key 
See gingiva.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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