spume

1 of 2

noun

: frothy matter on liquids : foam, scum
ocean spume
spumous adjective
spumy adjective

spume

2 of 2

verb

spumed; spuming

Did you know?

Spume is a word for froth or foam that has been a part of the English lexicon for more than 600 years. An early example is found in a 14th-century quotation from the English poet John Gower: "She set a cauldron on the fire … and let it boil in such a plight, till that she saw the spume [was] white." "Spume" was borrowed from Anglo-French espume or "spume," and can be traced further back to Latin spuma. "Spuma" is also akin to Old English "fām," a word that is the ancestor of the modern English "foam," a synonym of "spume." Another relative of "spuma" is "pumex," the Latin word for pumice, a volcanic rock with a somewhat foamy appearance that is formed from a rapidly cooling, frothy lava.

Examples of spume in a Sentence

Noun spume floating on the ocean
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The water’s edge was frothed into a pink spume - evidence, Kolya speculated, that the artemia were spawning. Henry Wismayer, Anchorage Daily News, 30 Aug. 2022 The water’s edge was frothed into a pink spume — evidence, Kolya speculated, that the artemia were spawning. Henry Wismayer, Washington Post, 29 Aug. 2022 Standing on these beaches creates a sense of natural infinity – of white sand, of frothy spume, of blue-green water. Angelina Villa-Clarke, Forbes, 18 Mar. 2021 In the intervening seven decades, the event has developed from a small sports-car show and race into a weeklong car-and-lifestyle bacchanal that blankets the Monterey Peninsula in plumes of blue smoke and champagne spume. Brett Berk, Car and Driver, 2 Mar. 2018

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'spume.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin spuma — more at foam

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of spume was in the 14th century

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Dictionary Entries Near spume

Cite this Entry

“Spume.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spume. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

spume

noun
ˈspyüm
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