Meaning & use
bloom
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Meanings
nouncountable
A flower, especially an open one, or the flowering stage of a plant.
Grammar: Countable for a flower, singular for the time of flowering: the roses are in bloom.
Patterns
- in bloom
- a bloom on something
The garden was full of pink blooms by May.
A single white bloom opened on the cactus.
Cherry trees are in full bloom this week.
verbintransitive
To produce flowers, or for a flower to open.
Grammar: No object: the tulips bloom in spring.
Patterns
- bloom in spring
- bloom early
The roses bloom from June to September.
Cherry trees bloom for just a week or two.
The cactus only blooms at night.
verbintransitivefigurative
To grow, develop or become healthy and successful.
Grammar: Figurative; no object: a talent blooming.
Patterns
- bloom into something
- bloom under someone
Her talent bloomed once she joined the choir.
The shy boy bloomed into a confident leader.
The small town bloomed after the new factory opened.
nounsingularliterary
A healthy, fresh look, especially a rosy glow in the face, or a time of best health and beauty.
Grammar: Usually singular: the bloom of youth.
Patterns
- the bloom of youth
- a bloom in her cheeks
The bloom in her cheeks returned after the holiday.
He was in the bloom of youth when the war began.
The fresh air brought a bloom to the children's faces.
nouncountablebiology
A sudden, large growth of tiny organisms, such as algae, in water.
Grammar: Scientific use: an algal bloom.
Patterns
- an algal bloom
- a bloom of algae
A thick algal bloom turned the lake green.
Warm weather and fertilizer runoff can cause a bloom in the bay.
Scientists tracked the plankton bloom by satellite.
Word forms
| plural | blooms |
|---|---|
| third person singular | blooms |
| past tense | bloomed |
| past participle | bloomed |
| -ing form | blooming |
Common combinations
- in full bloom
- The magnolia is in full bloom this week.
- come into bloom
- The roses come into bloom in early June.
- algal bloom
- An algal bloom closed the beach.
- bloom late
- These bulbs bloom late in the spring.
- bloom into
- The friendship bloomed into something deeper.
- bloom of youth
- She was in the bloom of youth.
Synonyms and how they differ
- blossom
- Blossom, especially for fruit trees, means the flowers collectively, and it is often interchangeable with bloom for the flowering verb.
- flower
- As a verb, flower is a neutral word for producing flowers and sounds a little more technical than bloom.
- flourish
- Flourish means to grow strongly and be successful, and it does not mean producing flowers.
- thrive
- Thrive stresses healthy growth under good conditions, while bloom adds a sense of reaching a beautiful peak.
Opposites
Word family
- blooming adjective
- flowering; in British slang, a mild way of saying very
- bloomer noun
- a plant that flowers at a particular time, as in late bloomer
- reblooming adjective
- flowering a second time in a season
- rebloom verb
- to flower again
Commonly confused: bloom or blossom? bloom or bloomers?
bloom vs blossom
Blossom usually names the mass of flowers on a fruit tree, while bloom is the single flower or the act of flowering.
bloom vs bloomers
Bloomers are loose old-fashioned underpants or trousers for women; the word is not about flowers.
Practice
Choose the best word: 'The cherry trees ___ for only two weeks every spring.'
Choose one answer.
The subject is plural and the time is a general truth, so the base form bloom is correct. 'Blooms' would need a singular subject, and the other options break the grammar.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “bloom”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.