broom

The story

1. Old English · inherited frombesma“broom, rod”
2. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*bʰrem-
3. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*brām“bramble”
4. Old English · inherited frombrōm“brushwood”
5. Middle English · inherited frombrom
6. English todaybroom

Inherited from Middle English brom, from Old English brōm (“brushwood”), from Proto-West Germanic *brām (“bramble”) (compare Saterland Frisian Brom, West Frisian brem, Dutch braam, German Low German Braam), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrem-, from *bʰer- ‘edge’. Related to brim, brink. Replaced English besom (from Old English besma (“broom, rod”)), which is now restricted in meaning to a particular kind of broom. (shotgun): So called because it is (like the cleaning utensil) long and held similarly to a besom and “cleans” what is in front.

Words from the same roots