fleam

F4L1E1A1M3
/fliːm/

noun

A sharp instrument used to open a vein, to lance gums, or the like.

OriginMiddle English fleme ← Old French flieme ← Vulgar Latin fletoma →
Scrabble 10
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

fleam1

nounfleam (plural fleams)

plural fleams · alternative phleam

  1. A sharp instrument used to open a vein, to lance gums, or the like.

    1831-1850, William Youatt, On the Structure and the Diseases of the Horse A bloodstick - a piece of hard wood loaded at one end with lead — is used to strike the fleam into the vein

fleam2

nounfleam (plural fleams)

plural fleams · alternative fleem

  1. Northern EnglandUKdialectalThe watercourse or runoff from a mill; millstream
  2. Northern EnglandUKdialectalA large trench or gully cut into a meadow in order to drain it

Origin

fleam · noun

  1. Ancient Greekφλεβοτόμον
  2. Late Latinflebotomus
  3. Vulgar Latinfletoma
  4. Old Frenchflieme
  5. Middle Englishfleme
  6. Englishfleam

From Middle English fleme, fleom, from Old French flieme, flemie (“open vein”), probably via a Proto-Germanic source (compare Old Saxon flēma, Old High German fliotuma, fliodema, Old English flȳtme (“fleam, lancet”)), borrowed from Vulgar Latin fletoma, *fletomus, from Late Latin flebotomus, phlebotomus, from Ancient Greek φλεβοτόμον (phlebotómon). Compare French flamme, Dutch vlijm, German Fliete, Danish flitte (“fleam”). Doublet of phlebotome.

More words from Middle English, Old French, Vulgar Latin

Full word history & related roots →

fleam · noun

  1. Proto-Indo-European*plew-“to fly; flow; run”
  2. Proto-Germanic*flaumaz“stream; current; flood”
  3. Old Englishflēam“fleeing; flight; rush”
  4. Middle Englishfleem
  5. Englishfleam

From Middle English fleem, flem (“the rushing of water; current”), probably from Old English flēam (“fleeing; flight; rush”), from Proto-Germanic *flaumaz (“stream; current; flood”), from Proto-Indo-European *plew- (“to fly; flow; run”). Cognate with Norwegian Nynorsk flaum (“flood”).

More words from Middle English, Old English, Proto-Germanic

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian ланцет
  • ланцет (lancet)medical instrument
Greek φλεβοτόμος
  • φλεβοτόμος (flevotómos)medical instrument

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with fleam

teamstreamprimeseemdreamextremeschemesupremebeamsteamredeemregimeupstreamscreamesteemdownstreamseamdeemKariminseamneemhemeacademegleam
All rhymes →

Anagrams

flame
Cite this entry
APA

fleam. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fleam

MLA

“fleam.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fleam. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “fleam,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fleam.

Source: fleam on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.