Dictionary

beam en · NOUN

Pronunciation

(US) audio
[ˈbɪi̯m]
/ˈbiːm/

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *bagmaz? Proto-West Germanic *baum Old English bēam Middle English bem English beam From Middle English bem, beem, from Old English bēam (“tree, cross, gallows, column, pillar, wood, beam, splint, post, stock, rafter, piece of wood”), from Proto-West Germanic *baum, from Proto-Germanic *baumaz (“tree, beam, balk”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰew- (“to grow, swell”). Cognate with North Frisian Boom, buum (“tree”), Saterland Frisian Boom (“tree”), West Frisian beam (“tree”), Cimbrian pome, póom, puam (“tree”), Dutch boom (“tree”), German Low German Boom (“tree”), German Baum (“tree”), Luxembourgish Bam (“tree”), Mòcheno pa'm (“tree”), Vilamovian baojm (“tree”), Yiddish בוים (boym, “tree”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish bom (“beam”), Icelandic baðmur (“tree”), Gothic 𐌱𐌰𐌲𐌼𐍃 (bagms, “tree”), Albanian bimë (“a plant”). Doublet of boom. The original English meaning of beam ("tree") is preserved in some compound words such as quickbeam. The verb is from Middle English bemen, from Old English bēamian (“to shine, to cast forth rays or beams of light”), from the noun.

Meanings

(qualifier:structural) Any large piece of timber or iron long in proportion to its thickness, and prepared for use.
- And a letter vnto Asaph the keeper of the kings forrest, that he may giue me timber to make beames for the gates of the palace which appertained to the house, and for the wall of the Citie, and for the house that I shall enter into: And the king granted me, according to the good hand of my God vpon me. 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Nehemiah 2:8:
(qualifier:structural) One of the principal horizontal structural members, usually of steel, timber, or concrete, of a building.
- Lucie opened the door: and what do you think there was inside the hill?—a nice clean kitchen with a flagged floor and wooden beams—just like any other farm kitchen. 1905, Beatrix Potter, The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle:
- The brasswork here, how rich it is in beams, / And how, besides, it makes the whole house sound. 1614–1615, Homer, “(please specify the book number)”, in Geo[rge] Chapman, transl., Homer’s Odysses. […], London: […] Rich[ard] Field [and William Jaggard], for Nathaniell Butter, published 1615, →OCLC; republished in The Odysseys of Homer, […], volume (please specify the book number), London: John Russell Smith, […], 1857, →OCLC:
One of the transverse members of a ship's frame on which the decks are laid, and acting as part of the support for keeping the sides of the vessel in shape — supported at the sides by knees in wooden ships and by stringers in steel ones; cf. abeam, beam-ends.
- Capt. King, from Demarara, was invaded by the gale on the evening of the 6th, in lat. 21° 51', and his vessel was thrown on her beam ends. He was forced to cut away her main-mast. Lost a man, who was washed overboard. . . . Capt. Mood, on a voyage from Alexandria (Virginia), to St. Mary's (Georgia), was, on the night of the 7th, in the Gulf Stream, to the eastward of Charlston: the wind there was east-north-east, and so hard as to throw his vessel on her beam ends. She lay several hours in this situation. Several of his crew were washed overboard. 1805 Alexander Tilloch. Account of a terrible Hurricane in the West Indies 1804. Philosophical Magazine. Vol. XXI. P. 14
- 1808 Richard Hall Gower. On the Theory and Practice of Seamanship. It often happens that by a sudden squall of wind a vessel is thrown over upon her beam ends, without a prospect of recovering her erect while she remains upon the same tack, therefore attempts are made to veer her; but as the rudder lies along the surface of the water it becomes useless, and as the sails are either blown from the yards, or become unmanageable, recourse is had to cutting away the main-mast and mizen-mast, that the ship may veer under the fore-mast:-a most desperate expedient, particularly if the ship is far distant from port!
The maximum width of a vessel (note that a vessel with a beam of 15 foot can also be said to be 15 foot abeam).
- Being only 280 ft. long, with a beam of 66 ft, their speed is moderate, and for a long time difficulty was experienced in steering them. 1892, Sydney Marow Eardley-Wilmot, The Development of Navies During the Last Half-Century, Chapter 7:
- This ship has more beam than that one.
The direction across a vessel, perpendicular to fore-and-aft.
- As the vessel passes a landmark, the landmark is said to be abeam. Once the vessel has passed the landmark, it falls abaft the beam, then it gradually falls astern.
The straight part or shank of an anchor.
The crossbar of a mechanical balance, from the ends of which the scales are suspended.
- The doubtful beam long nods from side to side. 1714, Alexander Pope, “The Rape of the Lock”, in The Works of Mr. Alexander Pope, volume I, London: […] W[illiam] Bowyer, for Bernard Lintot, […], published 1717, →OCLC, canto V:
In steam engines, a heavy iron lever having an oscillating motion on a central axis, one end of which is connected with the piston rod from which it receives motion, and the other with the crank of the wheel shaft.
(qualifier:agricultural) The central bar of a plow, to which the handles and colter are secured, and to the end of which are attached the oxen or horses that draw it.
A ray or collection of approximately parallel rays emitted from the sun or other luminous body.
- a beam of energy
- a beam of light
- What tho’ the moon—the white moon Shed all the splendour of her noon, Her smile is chilly—and her beam, In that time of dreariness, will seem (So like you gather in your breath) A portrait taken after death. 1829, Edgar Allan Poe, “Tamerlane”, in Al Aaraaf, Tamerlane and Minor Poems:
- A total of 15,000 beams of neutrinos were fired over a period of 3 years from CERN towards Gran Sassoin Italy, 730km (500 miles) away, where they were picked up by giant detectors. 2011 September 22, Nick Collins, “Speed of light 'broken' by scientists”, in Daily Telegraph:
- That light we ſee is burning in my hall: / How farre that little candle throws his beames, / So ſhines a good deed in a naughty world. c. 1596–1598 (date written), W[illiam] Shakespeare, The Excellent History of the Merchant of Venice. […] (First Quarto), [London]: […] J[ames] Roberts [for Thomas Heyes], published 1600, →OCLC, [Act V, scene i]:
(informal) The principal stem of the antler of a deer, which branches grow out from.
(informal) One of the long feathers in the wing of a hawk.
(literary) The pole of a carriage or chariot.
- Soon after this be subdued the Pisidians who made head against him, and conquered the Phrygians, at whose chief city Gordium (which is said to have been the seat of the ancient Midas) he saw the famous chariot fastened with cords made of the bark of the Cornel-Tree, and was informed that the inhabitants had a constant tradition, that the empire of the world was reserved for him who should untie the knot. Most are of opinion, that Alexander finding that he could not untie it, because the ends of it were secretly folded up within it, cut it asunder with his sword, so that several ends appeared. But Aristobulus tells us that he very easily undid it, by only pulling the pin out of the beam which fastened the yoke to it, and afterwards drawing out the yoke itself. a''' 1700, André Dacier, John Dryden, “Life of Alexander”, in Plutarch's Lives, translation of original by Plutarch:
A cylinder of wood, making part of a loom, on which weavers wind the warp before weaving and the cylinder on which the cloth is rolled, as it is woven.
(figuratively) A ray; a gleam.
- a beam of hope, or of comfort
- Worthless and lost our offerings seem, / Drops in the ocean of his praise; / But Mercy with her genial beam / Is ripening them to pearly blaze, / To sparkle in His crown above, / Who welcomes here a child's as there an angel's love. 1827, [John Keble], “Third Sunday after Epiphany”, in The Christian Year: Thoughts in Verse for the Sundays and Holydays throughout the Year, volume I, Oxford, Oxfordshire: […] [B]y W. Baxter, for J. Parker; and C[harles] and J[ohn] Rivington, […], →OCLC, page 68:
A horizontal bar which connects the stems of two or more notes to group them and to indicate metric value.
An elevated rectangular dirt pile used to cheaply build an elevated portion of a railway.
A balance beam.
A balance beam. ▸ A gymnastic activity or event using a balance beam.
A broad smile.
- He could barely remove the beam from his face when he said: "Arsenal is a massive club and you feel the pressure but I try to put in performances. 2023 September 3, Phil McNulty, “Declan Rice: The game-changing midfielder Arsenal need for title challenge”, in BBC Sport:

Forms

Spelling	Features	Labels	Source
beams	Number=Plur		lexicographic

Translations (257)

cmn 梁 (large piece of timber or iron) · it traversa (transverse member of a ship's frame) · tl barakilan (large piece of timber or iron) · es travesaño (principal horizontal beam in a building) · pt trave (large piece of timber or iron) · sh греда (large piece of timber or iron) · hi रश्मि (ray) · vo bem (large piece of timber or iron) · eo radio (ray) · fr perche (principal stem of an antler) · gl temón (bar of a plow) · de Breite (maximum width of a vessel) · hu sugár (ray) · da drager (principal horizontal beam in a building) · sh брвно (large piece of timber or iron) · ryu 桁 (large piece of timber or iron) · la trabs (large piece of timber or iron) · mi kauae (principal horizontal beam in a building) · fr lien (connector of notes) · pt apo (bar of a plow) · ga bíoma (large piece of timber or iron) · fr age (bar of a plow) · br lazh (bar of a plow) · mi kauwae (principal horizontal beam in a building) · hy գերան (large piece of timber or iron) · tr demet (ray) · uz sinch (large piece of timber or iron) · la būra (bar of a plow) · fi tyvi (principal stem of an antler) · cs paprsek (ray) · ms balak (large piece of timber or iron) · pl promień (ray) · es jácena (principal horizontal beam in a building) · be бэлька (principal horizontal beam in a building) · bg тре́гер (principal horizontal beam in a building) · ar جَائِز (principal horizontal beam in a building) · txb swāñco (ray) · cmn 橫梁 /横梁 (large piece of timber or iron) · ask kaṭë (large piece of timber or iron) · cs trám (large piece of timber or iron) · fi aisa (pole of a carriage) · gl cambón (principal stem of an antler) · az diniş (large piece of timber or iron) · fi runko (bar of a plow) · ryn 桁 (large piece of timber or iron) · wbk kāṭa (large piece of timber or iron) · bsh kaṭë (large piece of timber or iron) · dlm trua (large piece of timber or iron) · be брус (large piece of timber or iron) · ru бревно́ (large piece of timber or iron) · bg греда́ (large piece of timber or iron) · ru ба́лка (principal horizontal beam in a building) · grc δοκός (large piece of timber or iron) · nl biels (large piece of timber or iron) · cs oj (pole of a carriage) · it trave (large piece of timber or iron) · ar كَمَرَة (principal horizontal beam in a building) · el ακτίνα (ray) · da bjælke (principal horizontal beam in a building) · be перакладзіна (principal horizontal beam in a building) · gl bao (transverse member of a ship's frame) · ko 광선 (ray) · sv bjälke (principal horizontal beam in a building) · lb Stral (ray) · vi tia (ray) · ga giarsa (large piece of timber or iron) · az dirək (large piece of timber or iron) · de Grindel (bar of a plow) · bar Baam (transverse member of a ship's frame) · sw boriti (transverse member of a ship's frame) · ru брус (large piece of timber or iron) · la trabs (principal horizontal beam in a building) · gur bãraaga (principal horizontal beam in a building) · zza qetil (large piece of timber or iron) · pt feixe (ray) · nb bjelke (large piece of timber or iron) · fi valin (shank of an anchor) · nl dissel (pole of a carriage) · cs břevno (large piece of timber or iron) · es manga (maximum width of a vessel) · be праме́нь (ray) · ru коромы́сло (crossbar of a balance) · gl manga (maximum width of a vessel) · nn bjelke (large piece of timber or iron) · got 𐌰𐌽𐍃 (large piece of timber or iron) · ms galang (principal horizontal beam in a building) · kzg 桁 (large piece of timber or iron) · fa میله (large piece of timber or iron) · fi leveys (maximum width of a vessel) · nl breedte (maximum width of a vessel) · gl viga (large piece of timber or iron) · nn bjelke (principal horizontal beam in a building) · da bjælke (large piece of timber or iron) · uz to'sim (large piece of timber or iron) · bg стъбло (shank of an anchor) · bar Baam (principal horizontal beam in a building) · io traverso (principal horizontal beam in a building) · la būris (bar of a plow) · es viga (principal horizontal beam in a building) · nl balk (principal horizontal beam in a building) · pt viga (large piece of timber or iron) · tr kiriş (large piece of timber or iron) · fr madrier (large piece of timber or iron) · he אֲלֻמָּה (ray) · ota دیرك (large piece of timber or iron) · fi poikittaispalkki (transverse member of a ship's frame) · pt timão (bar of a plow) · la tignum (large piece of timber or iron) · ru ды́шло (pole of a carriage) · sv balk (principal horizontal beam in a building) · pt temão (bar of a plow) · nl straal (ray) · fi palkki (transverse member of a ship's frame) · la urvum (bar of a plow) · tr ışın (ray) · de Strahl (ray) · gl trabe (principal horizontal beam in a building) · ru веретено́ (shank of an anchor) · ko 빛줄기 (ray) · io trabo (principal horizontal beam in a building) · sq shtijë (bar of a plow) · hy ճաճանչ (ray) · hy շող (ray) · ko 빔 (ray) · ru луч (ray) · cy paladr (ray) · tl sepo (principal horizontal beam in a building) · it raggio (ray) · ms rasuk (principal horizontal beam in a building) · bg бимс (transverse member of a ship's frame) · mi kurupae (large piece of timber or iron) · nb bjelke (principal horizontal beam in a building) · pdt Baulkjen (principal horizontal beam in a building) · ms alang (principal horizontal beam in a building) · gl lata (bar of a plow) · cmn 射線 /射线 (ray) · gl raza (ray) · hi किरण (ray) · sl žarek (ray) · fr faisceau (ray) · hy ճառագայթ (ray) · ru шату́н (working beam) · fr merrain (principal stem of an antler) · sl tram (large piece of timber or iron) · ru ребро (connector of notes) · ota مرتك (large piece of timber or iron) · sk brvno (large piece of timber or iron) · sq rreze (large piece of timber or iron) · be бэлька (large piece of timber or iron) · bg лъч (ray) · it bure (bar of a plow) · de Balken (connector of notes) · fr poutre (principal horizontal beam in a building) · io radio (ray) · cmn 光線 /光线 (ray) · fr timon (pole of a carriage) · fa شعاع (ray) · uk ба́лка (large piece of timber or iron) · az balka (large piece of timber or iron) · sh brvno (large piece of timber or iron) · ar خَشَبَة (large piece of timber or iron) · ja ビーム (ray) · ms alang (large piece of timber or iron) · tr kiriş (principal horizontal beam in a building) · nl balk (large piece of timber or iron) · sv stråle (ray) · fi palkki (large piece of timber or iron) · lb Dunn (large piece of timber or iron) · de Balken (large piece of timber or iron) · is bjálki (large piece of timber or iron) · es timón (bar of a plow) · eo trabo (large piece of timber or iron) · fi kiertokanki (working beam) · he קוֹרָה (large piece of timber or iron) · ms galang (large piece of timber or iron) · el δοκάρι (large piece of timber or iron) · pl belka (large piece of timber or iron) · is geisli (ray) · io trabo (large piece of timber or iron) · la radius (ray) · pt raio (ray) · izh balkka (principal horizontal beam in a building) · es viga (large piece of timber or iron) · grc δοκός (principal horizontal beam in a building) · tl sinag (large piece of timber or iron) · gl raio (ray) · ru тра́верз (transverse member of a ship's frame) · sa अक्तु (ray) · ms rasuk (large piece of timber or iron) · fi varsi (crossbar of a balance) · de Balken (principal horizontal beam in a building) · xug 桁 (large piece of timber or iron) · fa بامه (ray) · yox 桁 (large piece of timber or iron) · ru перекла́дина (principal horizontal beam in a building) · ca cameta (bar of a plow) · mi haeata (ray) · ms sinaran (ray) · hu gerenda (large piece of timber or iron) · id balok (large piece of timber or iron) · fr ligature (connector of notes) · zlw-osk brvno (large piece of timber or iron) · af balk (large piece of timber or iron) · pt viga (principal horizontal beam in a building) · nl balk (connector of notes) · grc ἀκτίς (ray) · ja 桁 (large piece of timber or iron) · zlw-ocs břevno (large piece of timber or iron) · ru гря́диль (bar of a plow) · ms pelancar (large piece of timber or iron) · ro rază (ray) · fi orsi (crossbar of a balance) · fi palkki (principal horizontal beam in a building) · sv balk (large piece of timber or iron) · mi kurupae (principal horizontal beam in a building) · mvi 桁 (large piece of timber or iron) · it braccio (crossbar of a balance) · nl bundel (ray) · de Deichsel (pole of a carriage) · cmn 符槓 /符杠 (connector of notes) · es radio (ray) · cmn 光束 (ray) · gl cabezalla (pole of a carriage) · sq koll (bar of a plow) · it architrave (principal horizontal beam in a building) · az şüa (ray) · bar Baam (large piece of timber or iron) · uk про́мінь (ray) · ru ба́лка (large piece of timber or iron) · fi säde (ray) · he קוֹרַת רֹחַב (transverse member of a ship's frame) · fr limon (pole of a carriage) · it asse (large piece of timber or iron) · ja 梁 (large piece of timber or iron) · az tir (large piece of timber or iron) · fa پرتو (ray) · ba нур (ray) · ar شُعَاع (ray) · ro grindă (large piece of timber or iron) · it corno principale (principal stem of an antler) · nl ploegboom (bar of a plow) · roa-opt trave (large piece of timber or iron) · it barra timone (pole of a carriage) · ms pelancar (transverse member of a ship's frame) · rys 桁 (large piece of timber or iron) · prn këṭë (large piece of timber or iron) · fi palkki (connector of notes) · ja 光線 (ray) · fa تیرک (large piece of timber or iron) · cy arnodd (bar of a plow) · de Pflugbaum (bar of a plow) · lv sija (principal horizontal beam in a building) · sh greda (large piece of timber or iron) · ru бимс (transverse member of a ship's frame) · fa فرسپ (large piece of timber or iron) · zza berq (ray) · gl trabe (large piece of timber or iron)

beam en · VERB

Pronunciation

(US) audio
[ˈbɪi̯m]
/ˈbiːm/

Etymology

Meanings

(ambitransitive) To emit beams of light; to shine; to radiate.
- Jesus beams golden light from his solar plexus into Eric's root chakra. 2019, Justin Blackburn, The Bisexual Christian Suburban Failure Enlightening Bipolar Blues, page 23:
- to beam forth light
(figuratively, intransitive) To smile broadly or especially cheerfully.
- to beam with pride
(transitive) To furnish or supply with beams.
(transitive) To give the appearance of beams to.
(transitive) To transmit matter or information via a high-tech wireless mechanism.
- Beam me up, Scotty; there's no intelligent life down here.
- Beam me up (x4) / Beam me up town / Beam me down (x3) / Beam me back downtown 2010, “Beam Me Up”, in Walking the Midnight Streets, performed by Midnight Magic:
- The injured crewmembers were immediately beamed to sickbay.
(transitive) To transmit, especially by direct wireless means such as infrared.
- To beam a file to another Pocket PC, follow these steps: […] 2002, Michael Miller, 10 Minute Guide to Pocket PC 2002, page 74:
- To beam a file using the File Transfer Protocol. 1996, Eric S. Raymond, Guy L. Steele, The New Hacker's Dictionary, page 208:
(qualifier:currying, transitive) To stretch something (for example, an animal hide) on a beam.
(transitive) To put (something) on a beam.
(transitive) To connect (musical notes) with a beam, or thick line, in music notation.

Forms

Spelling	Features	Source
beamed	Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part	lexicographic
beamed	Tense=Past	lexicographic
beaming	Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part	lexicographic
beams	Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres	lexicographic

Deriveds

beam up · beamable

Descendants

ビーム · beamen · beamen

Translations (25)

de strahlen (to smile broadly) · fr briller (to emit light) · sv stråla (scifi: to transmit over high-tech wireless mechanism) · el ακτινοβολώ (to emit light) · da stråle (to emit light) · mi mimingo kata (to smile broadly) · mi mingo(mingo) kata (to smile broadly) · fr rayonner (to smile broadly) · fi säteillä (to emit light) · pl obelkować (to furnish with beams) · fi säteilyttää (scifi: to transmit over high-tech wireless mechanism) · de strahlen (to emit light) · fr rayonner (to emit light) · sv stråla (to emit light) · de beamen (weaving: to put on a beam) · mi aho (to emit light) · fi palkittaa (to furnish with beams) · nl stralen (to smile broadly) · fi säteillä (to smile broadly) · de beamen (scifi: to transmit over high-tech wireless mechanism) · bg излъчвам (to emit light) · el ακτινοβολώ (to smile broadly) · pl belkować (to furnish with beams) · sv stråla (to smile broadly) · fr téléporter (scifi: to transmit over high-tech wireless mechanism)

beam en · NOUN

Pronunciation

Etymology

Meanings

Forms

Deriveds

Hyponyms

Relateds

Synonyms

Translations (257)

beam en · VERB

Pronunciation

Etymology

Meanings

Forms

Deriveds

Descendants

Translations (25)