loam

[ lohm ]

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)

1. to cover or stop with loam.

loam

/ ləʊm /

noun

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

verb

1. tr to cover, treat, or fill with loam

loam

/ lōm /

1. Soil composed of approximately equal quantities of sand, silt, and clay, often with variable amounts of decayed plant matter.

Derived Forms

• ˈloaminess, noun
• ˈloamy, adjective

Other Words From

• loam·less adjective
• loam·y adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of loam¹

First recorded before 900; from late Middle English lome, earlier lam(e), Old English lām; cognate with Dutch leem, German Lehm “loam, clay”; akin to lime ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of loam¹

Old English lām; related to Old Swedish lēmo clay, Old High German leimo

Example Sentences

The best of the dirt, a loam that blends sand and clay, grows beets the size of an ogre’s head.

From MIT Technology Review

It succeeds best in a deep rich loam in a climate ranging from forty to fifty degrees of latitude.

From Project Gutenberg

The print of steel-rimmed hoofs showed in the soft loam as plainly as a moccasin-track in virgin snow.

From Project Gutenberg

In the valleys the land is a deep alluvial loam, easily worked, producing bountiful crops of the finest leaf tobacco.

From Project Gutenberg

The planters select a deep black loam or tenacious clay, or even loams mixed with sand.

From Project Gutenberg

For Connecticut seed leaf a light moist loam is the proper soil.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• acreage
• area
• beach
• continent
• country
• countryside
• district
• earth
• estate
• farmland
• field
• ground
• home
• homeland
• nation
• parcel
• plot
• province
• ranch
• real estate