clammy

[klam-ee]

adjective

clammier, clammiest 

1. covered with a cold, sticky moisture; cold and damp.

   clammy hands.

2. sickly; morbid.

   She had a clammy feeling that something was wrong at home.

clammy

/ ˈklæmɪ /

adjective

1. unpleasantly sticky; moist

   clammy hands

2. (of the weather, atmosphere, etc) close; humid

Other Word Forms

• clammily adverb
• clamminess noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of clammy¹

1350–1400; Middle English, equivalent to Middle English clam sticky, cold and damp + -y -y ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of clammy¹

C14: from Old English clǣman to smear; related to Old Norse kleima, Old High German kleimen

Example Sentences

Sweat breaks out on her brow, the kind that’s probably clammy and cold.

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“In the ‘morning’ the air is thick; it hangs in a clammy, damp mass that you can all but grasp with your hands.

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This shame is embedded into Western culture, says Ms Everts, who has long suffered embarrassment about her own clammy skin.

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“As soon as it gets sweaty and wet, it actually wicks heat away from your body and makes you feel really cold and clammy.”

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This evolutionary gift adds a clammy disquiet to the eye-jacked livestock, which never rests and is constantly evaluating its captors and fellow captives.

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