Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

loam

/loʊm/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.62 in modern English

Syllables: loam
IPA: /loʊm/

6

Scrabble Score

4

Letters

1

Syllables

4

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A type of soil; an earthy mixture of sand, silt and clay, with organic matter to which its fertility is chiefly due.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

A mixture of sand, clay, and other materials, used in making moulds for large castings, often without a pattern.

Countable; Uncountable

verb

To cover, smear, or fill with loam.

adj

Made of loam; consisting of loam.

Example Sentences

"Alexander died, Alexander was buried, Alexander returneth to dust, the dust is earth, of earth we make loam, and of why that loam whereto he was converted might they not stop a beer-barrel?"

Etymology

From Middle English lom, lome, from Old English lām (“clay, mud, mire, earth”), from Proto-West Germanic *laim, from Proto-Germanic *laimaz, *laimô (“clay”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂leyH- (“to smear”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Leem (“loam”), West Frisian liem (“loam”), Dutch leem (“loam”), German Lehm (“loam”). Related also to lime.

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: *h₂leyH-, lom, lām, *laim, *laimaz

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /loʊm/
British English: /ləʊm/

Usage

Inflected Forms

loams (plural) loams (present, singular) loaming (participle, present) loamed (participle, past) loamed (past)

Derived Forms

loamless Loamshire loamy loamer

Homonyms

loom (one pronunciation)

Rhymes With

home rome dome chrome foam jerome comb roam tome gnome ohm shalom

Questions

How do you pronounce loam?: The recorded pronunciation is /loʊm/.
What does loam mean?: A type of soil; an earthy mixture of sand, silt and clay, with organic matter to which its fertility is chiefly due.
Where does loam come from?: It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce loam

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “loam”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/loʊm/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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Repeat and practice — Say “loam” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.