Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com

Sam

1 American  
[sam] / sæm /

noun

  1. a male given name, form of Samuel.

  2. a female given name, form of Samantha.

SAM 2 American  
[sam] / sæm /

noun

  1. surface-to-air missile.

  2. Space Available Mail: a special air service for sending parcels weighing up to 15 pounds (6.8 kilograms) to overseas members of the armed forces: only the regular parcel post rate to the U.S. port of shipment is charged.

SAM 3 American  

  1. shared-appreciation mortgage.

Sam. 4 American  

abbreviation

Bible.

  1. Samuel.

SAM 1 British  
/ sæm /

acronym

  1. surface-to-air missile

"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
S.Am. 2 British  

abbreviation

  1. South America(n)

"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
Sam. 3 British  

abbreviation

  1. Samuel

"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
sam 4 British  
/ sæm /

verb

  1. dialect to collect; gather up

"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

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“This collaboration with Novo Nordisk will help them accelerate scientific discovery, run smarter global operations, and redefine the future of patient care,” said OpenAI Chief Executive Sam Altman.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

The situation becomes humorous where it concerns OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, a man with a very bad reputation outside of Silicon Valley.

From Slate • Apr. 14, 2026

In his earliest appearances as Sam, Kani had to apply gray makeup to his beard and temples to be believable as the middle-aged employee.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2026

Prior to the pilot Sam, who has three children at the school, said breakfast club "wasn't something we could ever look at" as it cost £3 per child, each day.

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2026

Sam didn't know what at work meant, except that it meant Dad wasn't around.

From "All About Sam" by Lois Lowry

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.