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clambake

[klam-beyk]
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noun
  1. a picnic or social gathering at the seashore at which clams and other seafood are baked, sometimes with corn and other items, traditionally on hot stones under a covering of seaweed.
  2. Informal. any social gathering, especially a very noisy one.
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Origin of clambake

An Americanism dating back to 1825–35; clam1 + bake
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for clambake

Historical Examples

  • "That's one way to keep cool at a clambake," grinned the man in gray.

    Frank Merriwell's Cruise

    Burt L. Standish

  • That name was on the stone before I joined you at the clambake.

    Frank Merriwell's Cruise

    Burt L. Standish

  • "Oh, yes, your dolls can come to the clambake," agreed Bunny.

  • There ought to be a public meeting about this, and resolutions, and perhaps a clambake.

  • I remember I wanted very much to dress in white for the clambake, some weeks after that, but you wouldn't allow it.

    Elsie at Home

    Martha Finley

British Dictionary definitions for clambake

clambake

noun US and Canadian
  1. a picnic, often by the sea, at which clams, etc, are baked
  2. an informal party
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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

Word Origin and History for clambake

n.

1835, American English, from clam (n.) + bake (n.). By 1937 in jazz slang transferred to "an enjoyable time generally," especially "jam session."

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper