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Definition of roam verb from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

roam

verb
 
/rəʊm/
 
/rəʊm/
Verb Forms
present simple I / you / we / they roam
 
/rəʊm/
 
/rəʊm/
he / she / it roams
 
/rəʊmz/
 
/rəʊmz/
past simple roamed
 
/rəʊmd/
 
/rəʊmd/
past participle roamed
 
/rəʊmd/
 
/rəʊmd/
-ing form roaming
 
/ˈrəʊmɪŋ/
 
/ˈrəʊmɪŋ/
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  1. [intransitive, transitive] to walk or travel around an area without any definite aim or direction synonym wander
    • + adv./prep. The sheep are allowed to roam freely on this land.
    • Ramblers are calling for the right to roam (= the freedom to walk in open countryside) to be extended.
    • roam something to roam the countryside/the streets
    Extra Examples
    • He'd roamed aimlessly for a few hours.
    • The animals were allowed to roam free.
    • They're roaming around the countryside.
    • Wild camels roam across the country.
    • roaming through the town
    • the wild dog's instinct to roam widely
    • when dinosaurs roamed the earth
    • A number of mammal species roamed widely around the northern hemisphere.
    • Animals roam freely around the village.
    • Gangs of barefoot children roam the city streets, begging for scraps.
    • I'd like to be a photographer and roam the world with my camera.
    Topics Hobbiesc2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb
    • free
    • freely
    • widely
    verb + roam
    • allow somebody/​something to
    • let somebody/​something
    preposition
    • about
    • around
    • across
    phrases
    • the freedom to roam
    • the right to roam
    • roam the earth
    See full entry
  2. [intransitive, transitive] (of the eyes or hands) to move slowly over every part of somebody/something
    • roam over something/somebody His gaze roamed over her.
    • Her eyes roamed over him, assessing him.
    • roam something/somebody Her eyes roamed the room.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb
    • free
    • freely
    • widely
    verb + roam
    • allow somebody/​something to
    • let somebody/​something
    preposition
    • about
    • around
    • across
    phrases
    • the freedom to roam
    • the right to roam
    • roam the earth
    See full entry
  3. Word OriginMiddle English: of unknown origin.
See roam in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary
halfway
adverb
 
 
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