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comb
1[ kohm ]
noun
- a toothed strip of plastic, hard rubber, bone, wood, or metal, used for arranging the hair, untangling it, or holding it in place.
- a currycomb.
- any comblike instrument, object, or formation.
- the fleshy, more or less serrated outgrowth on the head of certain gallinaceous birds, especially the domestic fowl.
- something resembling or suggesting this, as the crest of a wave.
- a honeycomb, or any similar group of cells.
- a machine for separating choice cotton or wool fibers from noil.
- a comblike instrument for imparting a grainlike finish to a painted surface.
- Chiefly Midland and Southern U.S. a ridge of a roof.
- a series of springlike prongs projecting from a spine, usually of plastic, for making a loose-leaf binding.
- a trowel having a notched edge for applying adhesives in setting tiles or the like.
- Armor. a ridge along the top of a helmet, especially of the morion.
- Masonry. drag ( def 34 ).
- the upper edge of the buttstock of a rifle or shotgun.
verb (used with object)
- to arrange or adorn (the hair) with a comb.
- to use (something) in the manner of a comb:
She was slowly combing her fingers through her hair.
- to remove (anything undesirable) with or as if with a comb:
She combed the snarls out of her hair. They combed the cowards from the group.
- to search everywhere in:
He combed the files for the missing letter.
- to separate (textile fibers) with a comb.
- to scrape with or as with a comb.
- to sweep across; rake:
High winds combed the seacoast.
verb (used without object)
- to roll over or break at the crest, as a wave.
comb.
2abbreviation for
- combination.
- combined.
- combining.
- combustion.
comb
/ kəʊm /
noun
- a toothed device of metal, plastic, wood, etc, used for disentangling or arranging hair
- a tool or machine that separates, cleans, and straightens wool, cotton, etc
- the fixed cutter on a sheep-shearing machine
- anything resembling a toothed comb in form or function
- the fleshy deeply serrated outgrowth on the top of the heads of certain birds, esp the domestic fowl
- anything resembling the comb of a bird
- a currycomb
- a honeycomb
- the row of fused cilia in a ctenophore
- go over with a fine-tooth comb or go over with a fine-toothed comb or go through with a fine-tooth comb or go through with a fine-toothed combto examine very thoroughly
verb
- tr to use a comb on
- whentr, often foll by through to search or inspect with great care
the police combed the woods
Other Words From
- comb·less adjective
- comb·less·ness noun
- un·combed adjective
- well-combed adjective
Word History and Origins
Word History and Origins
Origin of comb1
Idioms and Phrases
see fine-tooth comb .Example Sentences
As crime scene coordinator, Jo was first on the scene, combing the property for evidence.
“Why do we need ‘phases’ of the release and why not just release it to the entire public at large to comb through?”
Search teams combed the barren marshland on foot near to where he was found while a helicopter and drones searched for any clues on how and why he got there.
"No team can go through everything with a fine-toothed comb," she says.
It is understood that the UK government does not want to start combing through everybody's data.
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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