to press, squeeze, or wedge tightly between bodies or surfaces, so that motion or extrication is made difficult or impossible.
The ship was jammed between two rocks.
to bruise or crush by squeezing.
She jammed her hand in the door.
to fill too tightly; cram.
He jammed the suitcase with clothing.
to press, push, or thrust violently, as into a confined space or against some object.
She jammed her foot on the brake.
to fill or block up by crowding; pack or obstruct.
Crowds jammed the doors.
to put or place in position with a violent gesture (often followed byon ).
He jammed his hat on and stalked out of the room.
to make (something) unworkable by causing parts to become stuck, blocked, caught, displaced, etc..
to jam a lock.
Radio.
to interfere with (radio signals or the like) by sending out other signals of approximately the same frequency.
(of radio signals or the like) to interfere with (other signals).
Music. to play (a piece) in a freely improvised, swinging way; jazz up.
to jam both standard tunes and the classics.
Nautical. to head (a sailing ship) as nearly as possible into the wind without putting it in stays or putting it wholly aback.
to become stuck, wedged, fixed, blocked, etc..
This door jams easily.
to press or push, often violently, as into a confined space or against one another.
They jammed into the elevator.
(of a machine, part, etc.) to become unworkable, as through the wedging or displacement of a part.
Music. to participate in a jam session.
to collaborate informally, freely, and creatively with others.
Our department was jamming on a customer project and didn't have time to prep a demo for the conference.
Slang.
to make good progress; do well.
Working alone is awesome when I’m jamming on a project that I love.
to thoroughly like or enjoy something.
The colors came out rather well, but I'm just not jamming on the actual image.
the act of jamming or the state of being jammed.
a mass of objects, vehicles, etc., jammed together or otherwise unable to move except slowly.
a log jam; a traffic jam.
Informal. a difficult or embarrassing situation; fix.
He got himself into a jam with his boss.
Music.
a piece of music.
On November 18, the 16-year-old star dropped her new jam, marking an evolution in her sound and style.
Slang.
something that one particularly likes, enjoys, or does well: Since math is not my jam, I’ll let y’all figure out the rest.
Seriously, a huge meat patty and garlic fries are pretty much my jam after a day outside.
Since math is not my jam, I’ll let y’all figure out the rest.
something that one finds pleasant or easy.
Life isn't all jam for me just now.
a contest, meeting, or conference at which people collaborate informally, freely, and creatively.
People from 158 countries registered for the jam and shared their ideas for action to improve the quality of life in the world’s cities.
(tr) to cram or wedge into or against something
to jam paper into an incinerator
(tr) to crowd or pack
cars jammed the roads
to make or become stuck or locked
the switch has jammed
to activate suddenly (esp in the phrase jam on the brakes )
(tr) to block; congest
to jam the drain with rubbish
(tr) to crush, bruise, or squeeze; smash
radio to prevent the clear reception of (radio communications or radar signals) by transmitting other signals on the same frequency
slang (intr) to play in a jam session
a crowd or congestion in a confined space
a traffic jam
the act of jamming or the state of being jammed
informal a difficult situation; predicament
to help a friend out of a jam
See jam session
a preserve containing fruit, which has been boiled with sugar until the mixture sets
slang something desirable
you want jam on it
the principle of living for the moment
Jamaica
Bible James
First recorded in 1700–10; apparently imitative; cf. champ 1, dam 1
First recorded in 1730–40; perhaps special use of jam 1 (in the sense “to bruise or crush by squeezing”)
To jam is to squeeze something tightly into a space, the way your friends might jam themselves into your tiny car. You might have to jam an extra row of books onto your bookshelf when you run out of room. Another way to jam is to get stuck, and a jam can be a dense bunch of stuck people or things, like a traffic jam. If you play a musical instrument, you might jam, or casually improvise, with other musicians. And of course the jam you spread on your toast is a delicious, sweet fruit preserve.
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It has freezer jam, bright and almost indecently cheerful, a small rebellion against the end of fruit season.
From Salon ● Jul. 11, 2026
Also, they have been using so-called mesh networking technology, which is harder to jam and makes it possible to relay radio signals from drone to drone, thus allowing them to cover longer distances.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
Richard Thomas came out carrying venison and beef sausage, banana nut bread, a dog toy and a jar of apple maple bacon jam.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026
A circulation pattern over Europe is creating "the equivalent of a traffic jam in the atmosphere which locks in heat", Samantha Burgess from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, told AFP.
From Barron's ● Jun. 23, 2026
“Quinzy is Edward Ashton, and your theory about the haystack was correct. His true purpose has nothing to do with school songs or jam budgets or overgrown ivy.”
From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood
“We’re definitely taking security extremely serious at Kelce Jam. You’ll definitely feel safe being there.”
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 2, 2024
“It’s not going to stop anytime soon – especially with Kelce Jam. I think this will be the nail-in-the-coffin for the 2022 season.”
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 4, 2023
“If you don’t have chemistry, you can’t win Peach Jam. It’s impossible.”
From New York Times ● Jul. 30, 2014
I feel like that’s kind of how it is with music, most people are like, “Oh my God, Nirvana. Pearl Jam. Soundgarden.”
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 30, 2014
“I’ll tell them everything, please don’t let it come back, Jam. Jam, are you there? Redemption? I’m sorry, y’all, I’m so, so sorry.”
From "Pet" by Akwaeke Emezi
In Mozart’s opera, Tamino, a prince in a fairyland of mystic temples and mystifying gods, relies on his supernatural flute that turn sorrow into joy to get him out of jams.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026
The threat of new strikes on south Beirut's suburbs sent people fleeing the densely populated area in huge traffic jams linking the area to the capital city, AFP images showed.
From Barron's ● Jun. 2, 2026
Another Antiguan producer, Novella Payne, who cooks up a range of sauces, syrups and jams under her Granma Aki label, agrees.
From BBC ● May 31, 2026
These molecular "traffic jams" reduced the production of healthy proteins and increased protein aggregation.
From Science Daily ● May 29, 2026
“Darin and I came to a house like this to sell Nan’s jams once.”
From "An Ember in the Ashes" by Sabaa Tahir
The carriage doors had jammed and would not open, she added.
From BBC ● Jun. 19, 2026
The Covid lockdowns compounded the problem, disrupting maintenance routes and collections while leaving many viewers jammed or out of service.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026
The avenue is jammed on weekends, a rare artery of late-night action surrounded by streets abandoned to stray dogs as midnight approaches.
From Barron's ● Jun. 12, 2026
Beyond a couple of scuff marks and some debris jammed into the treads, our sojourn had left the shoes looking much as they had when I’d first taken them off the shelf.
From Slate ● Jun. 5, 2026
We clean off shelves jammed with empty cans of sealant, and half-full cans of paint, and tubs filled with assorted nails and screws.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
Wall Street loves an ugly portmanteau, or jamming together of two words in a way that sows confusion, followed closely by dislike.
From Barron's ● Jun. 12, 2026
Federal officials did not disclose the specific nature of the anti-drone jamming and remote grabbing technology that probably would be utilized.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 1, 2026
Rita Dobrinova, a manager at the Kherson municipal transport company, believes the threat from Russian drones is getting worse, particularly since they started using optic fibre cables, which are immune to jamming.
From BBC ● May 31, 2026
Sawyers said the 30mm rounds offer a reliable backup against an Iranian Shahed if other methods such as jamming don’t take down the drone first.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 30, 2026
The headset was still on his head, turned sideways a bit from his jamming back into the seat, and the microphone switch was dipped into his belt.
From "Hatchet" by Gary Paulsen
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.
