blossom

¹

[ blos-uhm ]

noun

, Botany.

1. the flower of a plant, especially of one producing an edible fruit.
2. the state of flowering:

   The apple tree is in blossom.

verb (used without object)

1. Botany. to produce or yield blossoms.
2. to flourish; develop (often followed by into or out ):

   a writer of commercial jingles who blossomed out into an important composer.

   Synonyms: sprout, burgeon, bloom, thrive

3. (of a parachute) to open.

Blossom

²

[ blos-uhm ]

noun

1. a first name.

blossom

/ ˈblɒsəm /

noun

1. the flower or flowers of a plant, esp conspicuous flowers producing edible fruit
2. the time or period of flowering (esp in the phrases in blossom, in full blossom )

verb

1. (of plants) to come into flower
2. to develop or come to a promising stage

   youth had blossomed into maturity

Derived Forms

• ˈblossoming, nounadjective
• ˈblossomy, adjective
• ˈblossomless, adjective

Other Words From

• blossom·less adjective
• blossom·y adjective
• outblossom verb (used with object)
• re·blossom verb (used without object)
• un·blossomed adjective
• un·blossom·ing adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of blossom¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English noun blosme, blossem, Old English blōstm(a), blōsma “flower”; cognate with Middle Dutch bloesem, Middle Low German blosem, blossem; bloom ¹, blow ³

Word History and Origins

Origin of blossom¹

Old English blōstm ; related to Middle Low German blōsem , Latin flōs flower

Example Sentences

They lovingly renovated the house, painting cherry blossom and doves - symbols of love and well-being - in their bedroom.

From BBC

It includes recipes for meyer lemon and bay leaf gelato, jasmine-scented almond milk mousse and fruit pudding made from white melon and orange blossom.

From Salon

And those structures stand to potentially blossom under a proposed $24.6 billion megamerger between Kroger and Albertsons, America’s two largest supermarket brands, that the Federal Trade Commission is suing to block over concerns the deal would create a monopoly.

From Salon

The renovation, which consisted of tearing up cherry blossom and crabapple trees and replacing historic rose varietals with more muted strains in a dramatic re-work, drew intense scrutiny from historians and gardening enthusiasts for its destruction of the historically significant and iconic botanical display.

From Salon

The first delegation, led by Shigeyuki Hiroki, the Japanese ambassador in New York, began by offering to plant 500 cherry blossom trees, donate books to the local library and start up an exchange program with Japan.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• bloom
• develop
• grow
• mature
• prosper
• succeed
• thrive