blooming

[ bloo-ming ]

adjective

1. in bloom; flowering; blossoming.
2. glowing, as with youthful vigor and freshness:

   blooming cheeks.

3. flourishing; prospering:

   a blooming business.

4. Chiefly British Slang. (used as an intensifier):

   He's got his blooming nerve.

adverb

1. Chiefly British Slang. (used as an intensifier):

   not blooming likely.

blooming

/ ˈbluːmɪŋ /

adverb

1. informal.
   (intensifier)

   blooming painful

   a blooming genius

Other Words From

• blooming·ly adverb
• blooming·ness noun
• non·blooming adjective noun
• pre·blooming adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of blooming¹

1350–1400; Middle English; bloom ¹, -ing ²; as intensifier, a euphemism for bloody, by phonetic similarity

Word History and Origins

Origin of blooming¹

C19: euphemistic for bloody

Example Sentences

But those who really know L.A. can tell you it’s a pleasure to stroll through, replete with blooming bougainvillea, rich history and street vendors and shops.

From Los Angeles Times

“It is thrilling to hike through the preserve with over 150 native plants and animals. Birds and other pollinators flock to salvia, buckwheat and yarrow. The dramatic silver-leafed Dudleya were blooming gloriously.”

From Los Angeles Times

Route 191 bends east here, passing by blooming cotton fields nourished by the Gila River before the terrain becomes rockier and steeper.

From Los Angeles Times

The sweet scent of food carts selling guava and bananas blends with blooming jasmine, burning incense, and the fragrant fumes of auto rickshaws driving by.

From Salon

Then one day, hiking in the wild lands around their home, Margaret realized that the hills were covered with fragrant, beautifully blooming plants like lupine and sages.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• budding
• flourishing