▪ I. fleam
obs. and dial. var. of phlegm.
▪ II. fleam, n.1
(fliːm)
Forms: 6 fleume, 7 flame, fleame, fleme, (8 fleem, flegme), 8, 9 dial. flem, (fleyam, vlem), 7– fleam. Also 8 phleam, 9 phleme. See also flue.
[a. OF. flieme (Fr. flamme) = Pr. flecme, Sp. fleme, It. fiama, repr. med.L. fletoma (Wr.-Wülck. 400), flēdomum (Leiden Gloss. OET. 114), from late Lat. flebotomum, ad. Gr. ϕλεβοτόµον: see phlebotomy. From the med.L. forms were adopted OE. fl{yacu}tme, OHG. flietuma, fliedema (MHG. fliedeme, vliete(n, vliedene, mod.Ger. fliete); cf. also MDu. vlîme, vlieme. The mod.F. use = sense 2 below.]
1. A surgical instrument for letting blood or for lancing the gums; a lancet. In Great Britain Obs. or arch.; the U.S. dicts. c 1897 treated it as still current for a gum-lancet.
| [a 1000 Aldhelm Gl. in Zeitschr. f. d. A. IX. 453 Flebotomo, blodsexe vel flytman.] 1552 Huloet, Bloude lettynge..the instrumente wherwyth bloude is letten, called a fleume. 1611 Cotgr., Deschaussoir, a Fleame; the toole wherewith Barbers diuide the gum from the tooth which they would draw out. 1688 R. Holme Armoury iii. xiii. 481/2 An..Ancient Flegme, or Fleame. 1712 E. Cooke Voy. S. Sea 76 A little Fleem made of a Flint. 1790 J. Wolcott (P. Pindar) Ep. to J. Bruce 230 Wks. 1812 II. 166 Nor Scotch'd with fleams a sceptered Lady's hide. 1859 Thackeray Virgin. xl, Get a fleam, Gumbo, and bleed him. 1865 Tylor Early Hist. Man. viii. 219 The sharp stone with which the native phleme used to be armed. 1874 Knight Dict. Mech. I. 881/2 Fleam, a gum-lancet. |
2. A kind of lancet used for bleeding horses.
| 1616 Surfl. & Markh. Country Farme i. xxviii. 123 The Farrier..must neuer be vnprouided..with tooles..as fleame to let bloud with [etc.]. 1748 tr. Vegetius' Distemp. Horses 46 You shall Strike into it a Fleam made of hard steel. 1769 De Foe's Tour Gt. Brit. III. 104 The principal Manufactures here [in Sheffield] are..Razors, Lancets, Phleams [etc.]. 1847 Youatt Horse xi. 362 Bleeding..is performed with a fleam or a lancet. |
3. Comb., as fleam-shaped adj. Also fleam-stick (see quot. 1842); fleam-tooth, a fleam-shaped tooth of a saw.
| 1856 Kane Arct. Expl. I. xvii. 206 The *fleam-shaped tips of their lances were of unmistakable steel. |
| 1842 Akerman Gloss. Wilts, *Flem-stick, the small staff used to strike the flem into the vein. |
| 1874 Knight Dict. Mech. I. 881/2 *Fleam-tooth. |
▪ III. fleam, n.2
(fliːm)
In 4–7 fleme, 4, 9 dial. flem.
[App. a var. of flume (ME. flum), which has both senses; but the phonology is obscure; there may be some confusion with a Teut. word, OE. *fléam:—*flaumo- f. root of OHG. flawen to wash.]
† 1. A stream, river. Chiefly in flem Jordan = L. flumen Jordanis. Obs.
| c 1300 St. Margarete lviii, Ant let the folewen in holi fonston, Ase ihū christ was ymself y the flem iurdan. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. C. 309 Þe grete flem of þy flod folded me vmbe. c 1430 Syr Tryam. 142 To fleme Jordon and to Bedlem. 1516 in Myrr. our Ladye (1873) p. l, The water of fleme Iordane was stopped ayenst the natural course. |
2. An artificial channel, watercourse, mill-stream. Now only dial.
| 1523 Fitzherb. Surv. xi. (1539) 55 By a mylne fleme made with mens hande. 1686 Plot Staffordsh. 356 Cutting a fleme or main carriage 18 foot broad. 1879 G. F. Jackson Shropsh. Wordbk., Flem, a mill-stream i.e. the channel of water from the main-stream to the mill. 1881 Leicester Gloss., Fleam, a ‘mill-tail’, the stream that flows from a watermill after having turned the wheel. |
▪ IV. fleam, v.1 Obs. exc. dial.
(fliːm)
[f. prec. n.2]
intr. To flow, stream. Also, transf. to drift away.
| c 1400 Destr. Troy xxv. 10004 Blode flemyt o fer in flattes aboute. c 1465 Eng. Chron. 92 His trew blode has flemed bothe be swerde and exyle. 1863 R. Buchanan Undertones 120 As the vapours fleam'd away, behold! I saw..A nymph. |
▪ V. † fleam, v.2 Obs. rare.
In 5 flym.
[ad. OF. flime-r, flieme-r, f. flieme fleam n.1]
trans. To cut with a lancet.
| 1483 Caxton Gold. Leg. 434 b/1 Anone the same lytel whelke beganne to blede as one had flymed hit. |
▪ VI. fleam
var. of fleme n. and v.