broom

/bruːm/ (bre, ipa) · /bruːm/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈbrüm ˈbru̇m/ (ame, mw)

broom — noun

1. a long-handled tool with stiff hairs or plastic strips at one end, used for swee

1.名詞A2
釋義

a long-handled tool with stiff hairs or plastic strips at one end, used for sweeping dirt from floors or outdoor ground.

例句

Priya grabbed a broom and swept broken glass from the kitchen floor.

sweep with a broom

A broom stood by the kitchen wall after Omar swept up spilled rice.

同義詞
  • brush

    a broader word for many cleaning tools; a broom is mainly for sweeping floors or ground.

  • sweeping brush

    close in meaning; more descriptive and slightly more formal.

文法句型

a broom

sweep with a broom

用法筆記

Usually names the ordinary tool for cleaning floors, steps, or yards. Distinguish from sense 2, which is the story image of a twig broom linked with witches.

常見錯誤

❌I cleaned the floor with a broomstick.
✅I cleaned the floor with a broom.
💡a 'broomstick' is only the stick part, not the whole tool.
❌There were much brooms by the door.
✅There were many brooms by the door.
💡this sense is countable.

2. a broom made from tied sticks or twigs, especially the one witches are shown rid

2.名詞B1
釋義

a broom made from tied sticks or twigs, especially the one witches are shown riding in stories.

例句

The costume shop sold a black hat and a twig broom.

twig broom

In the play, Zara flew across the stage on a broom.

ride on a broom

同義詞
  • witch's broom

    the clearest phrase when the magical story image matters.

  • twig broom

    stresses what it is made from rather than the magic image.

文法句型

ride on a broom

a broom made of twigs

用法筆記

Mostly used in fairy tales, Halloween talk, and stage costumes rather than everyday cleaning. Distinguish from sense 1: both are brooms, but this sense brings in the traditional story image.

常見錯誤

❌The witch flew with a broom.
✅The witch flew on a broom.
💡English normally uses 'on' for the riding image.
❌She carried a broomstick broom.
✅She carried a broom made of twigs.
💡'broomstick' names the handle, not the whole object.

3. a brush used in curling to rub the ice in front of a moving stone.

3.名詞C1
釋義

a brush used in curling to rub the ice in front of a moving stone.

例句

Ravi swept hard with his broom as the stone neared the circle.

curling: sweep with a broom

Each player carried a stone, a broom, and warm gloves.

a stone and broom

同義詞
  • curling broom

    full name used when the sports context is not already clear.

  • brush

    used inside curling, but less exact outside that context.

文法句型

sweep with a broom

a stone and broom

用法筆記

Only used in the sport of curling. The word often appears near 'stone', 'ice', and 'sweep', which makes it easy to separate from the household tool in sense 1.

常見錯誤

❌Pass me the curling stick.
✅Pass me the curling broom.
💡in curling, the brush is called a 'broom'.

4. a shrub that grows in the wild and has thin green stems and many small yellow fl

4.名詞C2
釋義

a shrub that grows in the wild and has thin green stems and many small yellow flowers.

例句

Yellow broom covered the hillside near the old stone wall.

plant name: broom covered the hillside

Beatriz planted broom along the fence for spring color.

plant broom

同義詞
  • broom shrub

    a descriptive label rather than a different common word.

  • broom plant

    used when you need to show clearly that the meaning is botanical.

文法句型

broom grows

plant broom

用法筆記

Usually treated as an uncountable plant name in gardening or nature writing. Distinguish from sense 1 by the surrounding words: flowers, stems, hillsides, or planting.

常見錯誤

❌Many brooms were blooming by the road.
✅There was broom blooming by the road.
💡this plant sense is usually uncountable.
❌I swept the yard with broom.
✅I swept the yard with a broom.
💡without 'a', English readers may think of the plant sense.

broom — verb