Clams up
noun
1.
any of various bivalve mollusks, especially certain edible species. Compare quahog, soft-shell clam.
2.
Informal. a secretive or silent person.
3.
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.
00:10
Clams up
is always a great word to know.
So is quincunx. Does it mean:
| an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle. |
| a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc. |
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.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To clams up
Collins
World English Dictionary
clam1 (klæm) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | any of various burrowing bivalve molluscs of the genera Mya, Venus, etc. Many species, such as the quahog and soft-shell clam, are edible and Tridacna gigas is the largest known bivalve, nearly 1.5 metres long |
| 2. | the edible flesh of such a mollusc |
| 3. | informal a reticent person |
| —vb , clams, clamming, clammed | |
| 4. | chiefly (US) (intr) to gather clams |
| [C16: from earlier clamshell, that is, shell that clamps; related to Old English clamm fetter, Old High German klamma constriction; see | |
| clam2 (klæm) | |
| —vb , clams, clamming, clammed | |
| a variant of clem | |
| clem or clam (klɛm) | |
| —vb , clems, clemming, clemmed, clams, clamming, clammed | |
| dialect (English) ( | |
| [C16: of Germanic origin; related to Dutch, German klemmen to pinch, cramp; compare Old English beclemman to shut in] | |
| clam or clam | |
| —vb | |
| [C16: of Germanic origin; related to Dutch, German klemmen to pinch, cramp; compare Old English beclemman to shut in] | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
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, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Slang Dictionary
clam definition
|
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Nearby Words
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