Loom
/luːm/noun
A device for weaving cloth, or to appear indistinctly or threateningly.
Did you know?The weaving sense of *loom* is a later development from an older English word meaning “to appear dimly,” so the same word family gave us both a threatening apparition and a cloth-making machine.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*leuk-
“to shine, be bright”
Old English
English
lōma
“a tool or implement; later associated with weaving”
Middle English
English
lomen
“to appear indistinctly; to show faintly”
14th Century
English
lome
“to show dimly, to come into view”
17th Century
English
loom
“a frame or machine for weaving cloth”
Modern English
English
loom
“a weaving machine; to appear as a dim or threatening presence”
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