noun
1.
a rich, friable soil containing a relatively equal mixture of sand and silt and a somewhat smaller proportion of clay.
2.
a mixture of clay, sand, straw, etc., used in making molds for founding and in plastering walls, stopping holes, etc.
3.
earth or soil.
4.
Obsolete. clay or clayey earth.
verb (used with object)
5.
to cover or stop with loam.
00:10
Loam
is one of our favorite verbs.
So is peculate. Does it mean:
| chat, to converse |
| to steal or take dishonestly (money, esp. public funds, or property entrusted to one's care); embezzle. |
Origin:
before 900; late Middle English lome, earlier lam(e), Old English lām; cognate with Dutch leem, German Lehm loam, clay; akin to lime1
before 900; late Middle English lome, earlier lam(e), Old English lām; cognate with Dutch leem, German Lehm loam, clay; akin to lime1
Related forms
loam·i·ness, noun
loam·less, adjective
loam·y, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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|
Link To loam
Collins
World English Dictionary
loam (ləʊm) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | rich soil consisting of a mixture of sand, clay, and decaying organic material |
| 2. | a paste of clay and sand used for making moulds in a foundry, plastering walls, etc |
| —vb | |
| 3. | (tr) to cover, treat, or fill with loam |
| [Old English lām; related to Old Swedish lēmo clay, Old High German leimo] | |
| 'loamy | |
| —adj | |
| 'loaminess | |
| —n | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History
loam
O.E. lam "clay, mud, mire, earth," from P.Gmc. *laimaz (cf. O.S. lemo, Du. leem, Ger. Lehm), from PIE root *lai-/*li- "to be sticky" (see lime (1)). As a type of highly fertile clayey soil, it is attested from 1664.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Science Dictionary
loam  (lōm) Pronunciation Key
Soil composed of approximately equal quantities of sand, silt, and clay, often with variable amounts of decayed plant matter. |
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Example sentences
The smell of the crops and loam and topsoil and manure wafted though the open door.
The enclosure smelled of warm straw and the wet loam of early spring.
Once, this garden's rich loam supported a holly farm.
The country they inhabit is chiefly loam and swampy.
Nearby Words
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