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• lam
  lam

  verb (used with object)

  to beat; thrash.
• lām
  lām

  noun

  the 23rd letter of the Arabic alphabet.
• Lam
  Lam

  noun

  Wifredo or Wilfredo 1902–82, Cuban painter in Europe.
• lam.
  lam.

  abbreviation

  laminated.
• Lam.
  Lam.

  abbreviation

  Lamentations.

lam

¹ American  

[lam] / læm /

verb (used with object)

lammed, lamming

1. to beat; thrash.

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verb (used without object)

lammed, lamming

1. to beat; strike; thrash (usually followed by out orinto ).

lam ² American  

[lam] / læm /

noun

1. a hasty escape; flight.

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verb (used without object)

lammed, lamming

1. to run away quickly; escape; flee.

   I'm going to lam out of here as soon as I've finished.

idioms

1. on the lam, escaping, fleeing, or hiding, especially from the police.

   He's been on the lam ever since he escaped from jail.

2. take it on the lam, to flee or escape in great haste.

   The swindler took it on the lam and was never seen again.

lām ³ American  

[lahm] / lɑm /

noun

1. the 23rd letter of the Arabic alphabet.

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Lam ⁴ American  

[lahm, lam] / lɑm, læm /

noun

1. Wifredo or Wilfredo 1902–82, Cuban painter in Europe.

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lam. ⁵ American  

abbreviation

1. laminated.

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Lam. ⁶ American  

abbreviation

Bible.

1. Lamentations.

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lam ¹ British  

/ læm /

noun

1. a sudden flight or escape, esp to avoid arrest

2. 1. making an escape

   2. in hiding

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verb

1. (intr) to escape or flee

lam ² British  

/ læm /

verb

1. (tr) to thrash or beat

2. (intr; usually foll by into or out) to make a sweeping stroke or blow

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Lam. ³ British  

abbreviation

1. Lamentations

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lam More Idioms  

1. see on the lam.

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Etymology

Origin of lam¹

1590–1600; < Old Norse lamdi, past tense of lemja to beat; akin to lame ¹

Origin of lam²

1885–90; special use of lam ¹. Compare beat it! be off!

Origin of lām³

From Arabic; see origin at lambda

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Explanation

The verb lam has two meanings: to hit or to run away. If you see a bully making little kids cry, you may be tempted to lam him in the nose and then lam before he can retaliate. The British slang meaning of lam, "hit or beat," is the oldest one, dating from the 16th century. It stems from an Old Norse root that means "to beat" or "to make lame." The newer, North American definition, "escape," can also be used as a noun: "After he stole his cousin's car he went on the lam." Experts trace this meaning back to slang used by pickpockets.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lam Lam Lam. lammed lamming

While on the lam, Diamantis has tossed aside the standard fugitive playbook.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

Before long, Frank and the Bride are on the road and on the lam, invigorating the nation in their path.

From Salon ● Mar. 8, 2026

Monkeys on the lam in St. Louis and AI isn’t helping.

From MarketWatch ● Jan. 15, 2026

Or, in this case, that Manchester — on the lam after escaping prison — ends up falling in love with Leigh and being embraced by her family and community.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2025

Aloe asked across the breakfast table, and lam started, her fork clattering against her plate.

From "Pet" by Akwaeke Emezi

Building on earlier investigations by former lab colleague King Lam Hui, PhD, Ma identified the human gene that produces the enzyme, giving researchers a way to examine its function much more closely.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 5, 2026

The BBC's Lana Lam asked Sydney residents: how long will it take you to get to WSI?

From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026

Lam, himself a former Samoan international, told Bristol's website, external he believed the club could help provide support to Auvaa and was the right place for him to develop on and off the field.

From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026

Lam Research, Applied Materials and Advanced Micro Devices claimed the No. 3, 6 and 7 spots, respectively.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026

“Not just land but the Lam Sing Refugee Camp,” the captain says confidently.

From "First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers" by Loung Ung

In one collection of these shells, there were some valves of the Venus sinuosa, Lam., the same species found with the Mactra on the banks of the Uruguay.

From Geological Observations on South America by Charles Darwin

Caryophylla fastigata, Lam.; and Porites subdigitata, Lam.: the only shell that we observed upon the reef was a Delphinula laciniata, Lam.

From Narrative of a Survey of the Intertropical and Western Coasts of Australia Performed between the years 1818 and 1822 — Volume 2 by Phillip Parker King

John Yeardley had a pretty long time next, from Lam. iii.

From Memoir and Diary of John Yeardley, Minister of the Gospel by John Yeardley

And concerning that which is supernal it is written, Lam. ii.

From Hebrew Literature by Epiphanius Wilson

How deeply, from this point of view, the loss of the king was felt, at the time when that which is here merely the ideal present became the real present, is seen from Lam. iv.

From Christology of the Old Testament: And a Commentary on the Messianic Predictions, Vol. 1 by Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg

But before a damage suit could be prosecuted, the spiritual leader of 20 million Ismali Moslems lammed out of town.

From Time Magazine Archive

The diversion which enthralls him most is golf, and once golf awarded him its most coveted prize: four months ago he lammed out a hole in one.

From Time Magazine Archive

Elia Kazan was casting Inge's new Broadway production, The Dark at the Top of the Stairs, and when Tuesday Weld suddenly lammed for Hollywood, Sandy became understudy for two roles.

From Time Magazine Archive

Last week he lammed out for good, dying at 86 on his upstate New York farm.

From Time Magazine Archive

Like kingpins, one steel tier lammed into another, then they all crashed to the floor with a sound as of the roof falling.

From "Black Boy" by Richard Wright

I don’t blame you, now, for lamming me over the ear like you done.

From The Mesa Trail by H. Bedford-Jones

Shinners, scalpers, and tweaks are good too—jolly good!… but of course all this comes after lamming and tunding….

From Snake and Sword A Novel by Percival Christopher Wren

I was bound to get a lamming purty soon anyhow.

From Danny's Own Story by Don Marquis

I thinks that lamming is about due now.

From Danny's Own Story by Don Marquis

You had to keep lamming and maybe you never got a chance to enjoy it.

From Hooded Detective, Volume III No. 2, January, 1942 by Various

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