/ˈpluːm/, /ˈpljuːm/, /ˈplum/
OriginFrom Late Middle English plum, plume (“feather; plumage”), from Anglo-Norman plum, plume f and Middle French, Old French plume f, plome (“plumage; down used for stuffing pillows, etc.; pen, quill”) (modern French plume f (“feather; pen, quill; pen nib; (figurative) writer”)), and directly from its etymon Latin plūma f (“feather; plumage; down”) (compare Late Latin plūma f (“pen, quill”)), from Proto-Italic *plouksmā, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *plewk- (“to fly; to flow; to run; to flap with hands; to splash”).
The English word is a doublet of pluma.
- archaic, literary, poeticA feather of a bird, especially a large or showy one used as a decoration.
“Near-synonym: aigrette”
“Under a Coronet his flowing haire / In curles on either cheek plaid, wings he wore / Of many a colourd plume ſprinkl'd with Gold, / His habit fit for ſpeed ſuccinct, and held / Before his decent ſteps”
“The firſt thing that ſtruck Manfred’s eyes was a groupe of his ſervants endeavouring to raiſe ſomething that appeared to him a mountain of ſable plumes. […] [W]hat a ſight for a father’s eyes!—he behe”
- archaic, literary, poeticA cluster of feathers worn as an ornament, especially on a helmet; a hackle.
“Near-synonym: aigrette”
“The fearful infant turn'd his head away, / And on his nurſe's neck reclining lay, / His unknown father ſhunning with affright, / And looking back on ſo uncouth a ſight; / Daunted to ſee a face with ſt”
- figurativelyA token of honour or prowess; that on which one prides oneself; a prize or reward.
“But well thou comſt / Before thy fellows, ambitious to win / From me ſom Plume, that thy ſucceſs may ſhow / Deſtruction to the reſt: [...]”
- The vane (“flattened, web-like part”) of a feather, especially when on a quill pen or the fletching of an arrow.
- abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsisEllipsis of plume moth (“a small, slender moth of the family Pterophoridae”).
- Things resembling a feather.
“Tidal gravitational effects cause plumes of sodium silicate to erupt from Elaaden's core, depositing unusually pure silicon sand across the surface—invaluable for manufacturing high-performance comput”
- A cloud formed by a dispersed substance fanning out or spreading.
“After the explosion, a plume of smoke could be seen in the sky for miles around.”
“The pollutant creates a contaminant plume within an aquifer.”
“Passengers on the earliest railway services would not even have enjoyed the luxury of a platform, instead having to step up onto the waiting open top wagons, where they would experience a journey that”
- An upward spray of mist or water.
- An arc of glowing material (chiefly gases) erupting from the surface of a star.
- A large and flexible panicle of an inflorescence resembling a feather, such as is seen in certain large ornamental grasses.
- abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsisEllipsis of mantle plume (“an upwelling of abnormally hot molten material from the Earth's mantle which spreads sideways when it reaches the lithosphere”).
- The furry tail of certain dog breeds (such as the Samoyed) that curls over their backs or stands erect.
- More fully gill plume: a feathery gill of some crustaceans and molluscs.
- also, figuratively, transitiveTo adorn, cover, or furnish with feathers or plumes, or as if with feathers or plumes.
- reflexive, transitiveChiefly of a bird: to arrange and preen the feathers of, specifically in preparation for flight; hence (figurative), to prepare for (something).
“I make no doubt she has made the best of her way back to the hospitable hall of Sir Watkyn Williams Wynne; and may very possibly be pluming her wings, at this present writing, among the breezy bowers ”
“I bless thee that thy angel-presence still infolds me here! / Forgive me, ere thy spirit plumest for the heavenly sphere.”
“[...] Ruth resembled the dove that plumeth its wings in readiness to fly away and be at rest, in the ark of everlasting peace and joy.”
- broadly, reflexive, transitiveTo congratulate (oneself) proudly, especially concerning something unimportant or when taking credit for another person's effort; to self-congratulate; to preen.
“He plumes himself on his skill.”
“pride and plume himself in his Deformities”
“We mention this Obſervation, not with any View of pretending to account for ſo odd a Behaviour, but lest ſome Critic should hereafter plume himſelf on diſcovering it.”
- archaic, transitiveTo strip (a bird) of feathers; to pluck.
“the king cared not to plume his nobility”
“They wou'd have plum'd his eagles on the field”
- archaic, broadly, transitiveTo peel, to strip completely; to pillage; also, to deprive of power.
- archaic, obsolete, transitiveOf a hawk: to pluck the feathers from prey.
“The hauke proineth when ſhe fetcheth oyle with her beake over the taile, and anointeth her feet and her fethers. She plumeth when ſhe pulleth fethers of anie foule and caſteth them from her.”
- intransitiveOf a dispersed substance such as dust or smoke: to fan out or spread in a cloud.
“Smoke plumed from his pipe, then slowly settled towards the floor.”
Formsplumes(plural) · plumes(present, singular, third-person) · pluming(participle, present) · plumed(participle, past) · plumed(past) · plume(infinitive) · plume(first-person, present, singular) · plumed(first-person, past, singular) · plume(present, second-person, singular) · plumest(archaic, present, second-person, singular) · plumed(past, second-person, singular) · plumedst(archaic, past, second-person, singular) · plumeth(archaic, present, singular, third-person) · plumed(past, singular, third-person) · plume(plural, present) · plumed(past, plural) · plume(present, subjunctive) · plumed(past, subjunctive) · plume(imperative, present) · -(imperative, past)