clam
IPA: kɫˈæm
noun
- A bivalve mollusk of many kinds, especially those that are edible; for example soft-shell clams (Mya arenaria), hard clams (Mercenaria mercenaria), sea clams or hen clam (Spisula solidissima), and other species. The name is said to have been given originally to the Tridacna gigas, a huge East Indian bivalve.
- A type of strong pincers or forceps.
- A kind of vise, usually of wood.
- (US, slang, chiefly in the plural) A dollar.
- (slang, derogatory) A Scientologist.
- (slang, vulgar) A vagina.
- (slang) In musicians' parlance, a wrong or misplaced note.
- (informal) One who clams up; a taciturn person, one who refuses to speak.
- (dated, US, slang) mouth (Now found mostly in the expression shut one's clam)
- A crash or clangor made by ringing all the bells of a chime at once.
- clamminess; moisture
- (rowing) Alternative form of CLAM
- Alternative form of clem (“to starve”) [(Tyneside, vulgar, slang) A testicle.]
- (rowing) Acronym of Clip-on Load Adjusting Mechanism. A device that can be fitted onto an oar to adjust set.
verb
- To dig for clams.
- To produce, in bellringing, a clam or clangor; to cause to clang.
- To be moist or glutinous; to stick; to adhere.
- To clog, as with glutinous or viscous matter.
adjective
- (obsolete) clammy.
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Examples of "clam" in Sentences
- The second became the great Blueshell clam.
- This makes harvesting clams a backbreaking task.
- Clam cakes and crab cakes are varieties of fritter.
- The clam doors protecting the cardeck were undamaged.
- Clams are also harvested in the shallow waters of the bay.
- The saltiness of the water killed the clam and opened the shell.
- The comedy elements of the forecast included the thermometer and the clam.
- In the USA, they are commonly known as the pea clams and the fingernail clams.
- Suddenly the clam slammed the shell shut, gripping the snipe's beak in between.
- The clam shell doors met each in the middle of the roof with no centre support.