clam up
Britishverb
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The question prompts Epstein to clam up: “Send me a number to call I don’t like records of these conversations.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 12, 2026
Jim Harbaugh will coach not to lose and clam up just enough to let Ohio State’s amazing skill talent pull the upset late.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 30, 2023
While Mr. Watts thrived on the stage, recording was more of a challenge; he said he was prone to clam up without an audience.
From New York Times ● Jul. 14, 2023
The leading chatbots are trained to clam up when they detect attempts to use them for nefarious purposes.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 4, 2023
“Superstitious folk don’t like to talk about things they’re afraid of. He was about to clam up, and I needed to know what he’d seen in the forest.”
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
