cram

[kram]

verb (used with object), crammed, cram·ming.

to fill (something) by force with more than it can easily hold.
to force or stuff (usually followed by into, down, etc.).
to fill with or as with an excessive amount of food; overfeed.

Informal.
1. to prepare (a person), as for an examination, by having him or her memorize information within a short period of time.
2. to acquire knowledge of (a subject) by so preparing oneself.
Archaic. to tell lies to.

verb (used without object), crammed, cram·ming.

to eat greedily or to excess.
to study for an examination by memorizing facts at the last minute.
to press or force accommodation in a room, vehicle, etc., beyond normal or comfortable capacity; crowd; jam: The whole team crammed into the bus.

noun

Informal. the act of cramming for an examination.
a crammed state.
a dense crowd; throng.

Origin of cram

before 1000; Middle English crammen, Old English crammian to stuff, akin to crimman to put in

Related formscram·ming·ly, adverbwell-crammed, adjective

Synonyms for cram

1. crowd, pack, squeeze, compress, overcrowd. 3. glut. 6. gorge.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for crams

load, wedge, shove, crowd, ram, stuff, squeeze, pack, overcrowd, force, choke, thrust, guzzle, overeat, compact, slop, crush, charge, jam, satiate

Examples from the Web for crams

Contemporary Examples of crams

A frustrated and untalented artist, Bary crams way too many words in a single sentence for a single line.
An ISIS Killer in His Own Awful Words
Miranda Frum
September 3, 2014
Sutherland cuts and crams facts and opinions into his tight confines.
John Sutherland‘s Enjoyable Little History of Literature
Malcolm Forbes
November 29, 2013

Historical Examples of crams

Into this he crams a heavy charge of powder and waits for the dawn.
Poachers and Poaching
John Watson
I have no doubt the man stuffs and crams himself at her cost.
A Charming Fellow, Volume II (of 3)
Frances Eleanor Trollope
Every one knows that the mother, (saucy as the daughter sometimes is,) crams him down her throat.
Clarissa, Volume 7
Samuel Richardson
The student who "crams" for an examination makes no permanent addition "Cramming" and "Willing" to his knowledge.
The Trained Memory
Warren Hilton
He crams into his bag indiscriminately the last vaudeville, the last sermon of the Archbishop, and the last essay of the Academy.
Harper's New Monthly Magazine, No. XXIII.--April, 1852.--Vol. IV.
Various

British Dictionary definitions for crams

cram

verb crams, cramming or crammed

(tr) to force (people, material, etc) into (a room, container, etc) with more than it can hold; stuff
to eat or cause to eat more than necessary
informal to study or cause to study (facts, etc), esp for an examination, by hastily memorizing

noun

the act or condition of cramming
a crush

Word Origin for cram

Old English crammian; related to Old Norse kremja to press

Cram

noun

Steve. born 1960, English middle-distance runner: European 1500 m champion (1981, 1986); world 1500 m champion (1983)

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 crams

cram

Old English crammian "press something into something else," from Proto-Germanic *kram-/*krem- (cf. Old High German krimman "to press, pinch," Old Norse kremja "to squeeze, pinch"), from PIE root *ger- "to gather" (cf. Sanskrit gramah "heap, troop," Old Church Slavonic gramota "heap," Latin gremium "bosom, lap"). Meaning "study intensely for an exam" originally was British student slang first recorded 1803. Related: Crammed; cramming.