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clam

 - 8 dictionary results
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clam

1  [klam] noun, verb, clammed, clam⋅ming.
Use clam in a Sentence
–noun
1. any of various bivalve mollusks, esp. certain edible species. Compare quahog, soft-shell clam.
2. Informal. a secretive or silent person.
3. clamminess.
4. Slang. a dollar or the sum of a dollar: I only made 60 clams a week.
–verb (used without object)
5. to gather or dig clams.
—Verb phrase
6. clam up, Slang. to refuse to talk or reply; refrain from talking or divulging information: The teacher asked who had thrown the eraser, but the class clammed up.
Origin:
1585–95; short for clam-shell, i.e., bivalve with a shell that clamps. See clam 2 , shell

Related forms:
clamlike, adjective
clammer, noun
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clam

2  [klam]
–noun
1. British Dialect. clamp 1 (defs. 1–3).
2. Machinery. (formerly) pincers.
Origin:
bef. 1000; ME; OE, deriv. of clamm fetter, grasp; c. G Klamm fetter; akin to clamp
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To clam
clam 1   (klām)   
n.  

    1. Any of various usually burrowing marine and freshwater bivalve mollusks of the class Pelecypoda, including members of the genera Venus and Mya, many of which are edible.

    2. The soft edible body of such a mollusk.

  2. Informal A close-mouthed person, especially one who can keep a secret.

  3. Slang A dollar: set me back 75 clams.

intr.v.   clammed, clam·ming, clams
To hunt for clams.
Phrasal Verb(s):
clam up Informal To refuse to talk.

[From obsolete clam-shell, shell that clamps, clam, from clam2.]
clam'mer n.
clam 2   (klām)   
n.  A clamp or vise.

[Middle English, from Old English clam, clamm, bond, fetter.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Slang Dictionary
clam

  1. n.
    a dollar. (Underworld.) : You got a couple of clams I can bum for a little bottle?
  2. n.
    a tight-lipped person. : Suddenly, she became a clam and wouldn't talk anymore.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Word Origin & History

clam 
c.1500, "bivalve mollusk," originally Scottish, from M.E. clam "pincers, vice, clamp," from O.E. clamm "bond, fetter," from P.Gmc. *klam-. Clambake is from 1835. Clam up is 1916, Amer.Eng., but clam was used in this sense as an interjection c.1350.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Computing Dictionary

CLAM mathematics, tool
A system for symbolic mathematics, especially General Relativity. It was first implemented in ATLAS assembly language and later Lisp.
See also ALAM.
["CLAM Programmer's Manual", Ray d'Inverno & Russell-Clark, King's College London, 1971].
(1994-11-08)

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2007 Denis Howe
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Idioms & Phrases

clam

In addition to the idiom beginning with clam, also see happy as the day is long (as a clam).

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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