Question

what does loam mean as it is used in the following lines of act IV, scene three of Romeo and Juliet?

Juliet: or, if I live, is it, not very like the horrible conceit of death and night, together with the terror of this place, as in a vault, and ancient receptacle, where, for this many hundred years years, the bones of all my berry ancestors are packed; where bloody tybalt, yet but green in earth lies festering in his shroud; Where, as they say, at some hours, in the night, spirits resort; alack, alack, it is not like that I, so early, waking, what with loathsome smells, and streaks, like mandrakes, torn out of the Earth, that living mortals, hearing them, run mad;

Horrible

Different

Sharp

Aromatic

Answer 1

[AI-generated answer — Bot GPT 3.5]

The word "loam" in this context refers to the loathsome smells that Juliet is describing as being in the ancient vault where her ancestors are buried. She is saying that the smells are so repulsive that they are like mandrakes torn out of the earth, suggesting a connection to the earth or soil. Therefore, in this context, "loam" can be understood as having an earthy or organic quality to the smell.