Definition of GUM

gum

Meanings

Plural: gums

Noun

  • a preparation (usually made of sweetened chicle) for chewing
  • the tissue (covered by mucous membrane) of the jaws that surrounds the bases of the teeth
  • any of various substances (soluble in water) that exude from certain plants; they are gelatinous when moist but harden on drying
  • cement consisting of a sticky substance that is used as an adhesive
  • wood or lumber from any of various gum trees especially the sweet gum
  • any of various trees of the genera Eucalyptus or Liquidambar or Nyssa that are sources of gum
  • The flesh around the teeth.
  • A viscous water-soluble carbohydrate exudate of certain plants that hardens when it becomes dry, or such a substance as a component of a plant exudate.
  • Any viscous or sticky substance resembling the true gum.
  • Chewing gum.
  • A single piece of chewing gum.
  • A gummi candy.
  • A hive made of a section of a hollow gum tree; hence, any roughly made hive.
  • A vessel or bin made from a hollow log.
  • A rubber overshoe.
  • A gum tree, any of various types of trees or an individual thereof.

Verb

  • cover, fill, fix or smear with or as if with gum
    • "if you gum the tape it is stronger"
  • grind with the gums; chew without teeth and with great difficulty
  • become sticky
  • exude or form gum
    • "these trees gum in the Spring"
  • To chew, especially of a toothless person or animal.
  • To deepen and enlarge the spaces between the teeth of (a worn saw), as with a gummer.
  • To apply an adhesive or gum to; to make sticky by applying a sticky substance to.
  • To stiffen with glue or gum.
  • To inelegantly attach into a sequence.
  • To impair the functioning of a thing or process.

Origin / Etymology

From Middle English gome, from Old English gōma (“palate”), from Proto-West Germanic *gōmō, from Proto-Germanic *gōmô, *gaumô (“palate”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰh₂u-mo-, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰeh₂w- (“to gape, yawn”).
See also German Gaumen, Old Norse gómr, Icelandic gómur; also Tocharian A ko, Tocharian B koyṃ (“mouth”), Lithuanian gomurỹs (“palate”). More at yawn.

Synonyms

chewing gum, gingiva, glue, gum tree, gumwood, mucilage, mumble

Scrabble Score: 6

gum is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL word
gum is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
gum is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 9

gum is a valid Words With Friends word