clam
1any of various bivalve mollusks, especially certain edible species.: Compare quahog, soft-shell clam.
Informal. a secretive or silent person.
Slang. a dollar or the sum of a dollar: I only made 60 clams a week.
to gather or dig clams.
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 of clam
1Other words from clam
- clam·like, adjective
- clam·mer, noun
Words Nearby clam
Other definitions for clam (2 of 2)
British Dialect. clamp (defs. 1-3).
Machinery. (formerly) pincers.
Origin of clam
2Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use clam in a sentence
Executives from Toshiba and Mitsubishi helped crowd the dining room, which claimed 18-foot ceilings, a robota grill and a glassed-in fish room, a cool pantry for the oysters, clams, live scallops and sea urchins that populated his menus.
Shibuya Eatery lives up to its name, bringing Tokyo street food to Adams Morgan | Tom Sietsema | October 30, 2020 | Washington PostThe bite-size morsel inside the shell is succulent and tender — no rubber-band chewiness like with a clam.
Mussels are simple to prepare, and add tasty drama to the table | Martha Holmberg | October 29, 2020 | Washington PostIn sandy tidewater areas, people wade along and feel clams on the bottom with their feet, then scoop them up and stow them in a mesh bag tied to their waist or suspended in a small floating tube.
14 wild edibles you can pull right out of the ocean | By Bob McNally/Field & Stream | October 19, 2020 | Popular-ScienceMost coastal states list where clams and mussels can be safely harvested, and those areas are subject to change.
14 wild edibles you can pull right out of the ocean | By Bob McNally/Field & Stream | October 19, 2020 | Popular-ScienceAkin to San Francisco’s signature cioppino, it’s an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink approach to seafood, with squidi, shrimp, clams, mussels and fish all thrown together into one delicious dish.
You see this a lot when individuals who are accused of something decide to clam up, often under the advice of their attorney.
Back in California, Zach finds that people from whom he might learn about the bombing either die, disappear, or clam up.
Joseph McElroy’s ‘Cannonball’ Is the Meta Iraq War Novel | Tom LeClair | July 25, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTAll of which makes me wonder why Lindsey Graham and his cohort were so afraid the guy would clam up.
Then I thought the non-celebrities would clam up because the cameras would make them nervous.
“The clam Castle was crowded with taxpayers,” Pete says in typical fashion.
Jeffrey Eugenides Hails Donald Antrim’s 'Elect Mr. Robinson for a Better World' | Jeffrey Eugenides | June 2, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTThe recovery of the oyster, clam and other edible shell-fish is also a feature of the work which the Lake Company has in view.
The Wonder Book of Knowledge | VariousIts shores were long stretches of mud-flats, corrugated everywhere with thousands of clam-holes.
The Rival Campers Afloat | Ruel Perley SmithThen I saw that the two halves of the clam-shell bucket were slightly open, just wide enough to let me squeeze in.
The Wreckers | Francis LyndeDown fell that pretty innocent, as falls a snow-white lamb; Her hair drooped round her pallid cheeks, like sea-weed on a clam.
The Book of Humorous Verse | Various"It's your kind of clam chowder, too," said Mrs. Hills, shaking her head.
Jane Journeys On | Ruth Comfort Mitchell
British Dictionary definitions for clam (1 of 2)
/ (klæm) /
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
the edible flesh of such a mollusc
informal a reticent person
(intr) mainly US to gather clams
Origin of clam
1- See also clam up
British Dictionary definitions for clam (2 of 2)
/ (klæm) /
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Other Idioms and Phrases with clam
In addition to the idiom beginning with clam
- clam up
also see:
- happy as the day is long (as a clam)
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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