witches' besom

English

Noun

witches' besom (countable and uncountable, plural witches' besoms)

1. Alternative form of witch's besom (“broom used by witches”)
   • 2010 August 19, Chris Maunder, Calling, Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 154:

     She stood up to cast the circle, using Frances' broom with its plastic handle, not much like a witches' besom. 'It's the symbolism of sweeping our sacred space clean that matters,' she said. Each of the four of them knew enough to improvise the calling of the quarters and spirits.

   • 2015 July 8, LaSara FireFox, Sexy Witch, Llewellyn Worldwide, →ISBN:

     What the Witness(es) Will Need […] Ideally, a Witches' besom (broom), but the plain old kitchen variety of broom works, too.

2. Witch's broom, a deformity found on a plant.
   • 2017 January 16, Aleksis Kivi, The Brothers Seven: A Tale, Zeta Books, →ISBN, page 238:

     […] his eye caught a burl, a crotch'd or twisted trunk a witches' besom high up in a dense birch or pine. He came to the strapping stump of a storm-snapp'd spruce and stood there staring at it musingly, then set to sculpting a slot in its side with his axe.