abbr.1. combination 2. combustion |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2019 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
comb  (k ōm)
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n.1. a. A thin toothed strip, as of plastic, used to smooth, arrange, or fasten the hair. b. An implement, such as one for dressing and cleansing wool or other fiber, that resembles a hair comb in shape or use. c. A currycomb. 2. a. The fleshy crest or ridge that grows on the crown of the head of domestic fowl and other birds and is most prominent in the male. b. Something suggesting a fowl's comb in appearance or position. 3. A honeycomb. v. combed, comb·ing, combs v.tr.1. a. To arrange or groom (the hair) with or as with a comb: combed her hair with a comb; combed his hair with his fingers. b. To move through or pass across with a raking action: The wind combed the wheatfields. 2. To straighten and separate (wool or other fibers) using a comb. 3. To search thoroughly; look through: combed the dresser drawers for a lost bracelet. 4. To eliminate with or as with a comb: combed the snarls out of his hair. v.intr.1. To roll and break. Used of waves. 2. To make a thorough search: combed through the file for the contract.
[Middle English, from Old English camb, comb; see gembh- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]  (click for a larger image) comb |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2019 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices
Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:
Indo-European Roots
Semitic Roots
The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.
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