clambake

[klam-beyk]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR clambake ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

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.

Informal. any social gathering, especially a very noisy one.

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. 2019

Related Words for clambake

barbecue, outing, excursion, cookout, chitchat, parley, conference, dialogue, appointment, deliberation, discussion, hearing, session, examination, interview, meeting, show, festivity, picnic, repast

Examples from the Web for clambake

Historical Examples of clambake

"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.
Bunny Brown and His Sister Sue at Christmas Tree Cove
Laura Lee Hope
There ought to be a public meeting about this, and resolutions, and perhaps a clambake.
Summer in a Garden, and Calvin, A Study Of Character
Charles Dudley Warner
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

a picnic, often by the sea, at which clams, etc, are baked

an informal party

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

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