As a deity name
Name 786 of the Gopal Sahasranāma — Sammohana Tantra, as taught by Lord Shiva to Goddess Parvati
Name 879 of the Narasimha Sahasranāma — Brahmanda Purana / Narasimha Purana, as taught by Sages to Assembly of Devotees
Name 447 of the Saraswati Sahasranāma — Skanda Purana, as taught by Lord Brahma / Sages
As a Hindi name
भीष्म · bhīshma · adj.
Terrible, horrible, terrific, fearful — Platts (1884), digital edition courtesy DSAL, University of Chicago, p. 200
भीष्म · masculine
Bhishma; son of Shantanu and Ganga, servicing the throne of Hastinapura and the supreme commander of the Kuru army in Mahabharata.; a male given name, Bhishma, from Sanskrit
भीष्म
terrible, formidable, horrible, dreadful, frightening, awe-inspiring
Śabdasāgara also records: भयानक रस । (साहित्य) · शिव । महादेव
a Hindi word, a tatsama: the Sanskrit word borrowed unchanged into Hindi भीष्म — per Wiktionary’s etymology record
“Borrowed from Sanskrit भीष्म (bhīṣma).” — per Wiktionary’s etymology record
bhīṣma mfn. terrible, dreadful, ŚBr. &c. &c.
bhīṣma m. (scil. rasa) = bhīṣaṇa, MW.
As a Sanskrit word
Meaning
terrible, dreadful, &c. &c.
Scripturally attested Verified derivationMultiple readings (4)Why this matches what you typed
The spelling you confirmed, भीष्म, is itself a dictionary headword — no grammatical transformation stands between what you typed and the meaning above.
Gender counterpart
The kosha attests this stem in the feminine, the masculine, and the neuter — the same name serves without alteration.
Dictionary citations
bhīṣma mfn. terrible, dreadful, ŚBr. &c. &c.
bhīṣma m. (scil. rasa) = bhīṣaṇa, MW.
death, Nyāyas., Sch.
N. of Śiva, L.
a Rākṣasa, L.
Alternative readings
More than one analysis survives full verification. That ambiguity is real, so we show every reading rather than pick one silently.
Caveats
Sources contain errors and engines have limits; every claim above carries its citation so you can verify it. This is guidance about names and their sources — not religious or astrological consultation. How we work · Our sources