slam dunk

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noun

Basketball. a particularly forceful, often dramatic dunk shot.

Slang. something regarded as certain to occur or be accomplished, typically something desirable that requires little further effort: The election is starting to look like a slam dunk for our side.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of slam dunk

First recorded in 1975–80

OTHER WORDS FROM slam dunk

slam dunker, noun

Words nearby slam dunk

slaker, slalom, slam, slam-bang, slam dance, slam dunk, slammer, slamming, slander, slanderous, slang

Other definitions for slam dunk (2 of 2)

slam-dunk

[ slam-duhngk ]

/ ˈslæmˌdʌŋk /

verb (used with object)

Basketball. to dunk (the ball) with great force.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use slam dunk in a sentence

GOOD Meat has never been able to test the capacity of cell proliferation to that extent, but Tetrick is convinced that once he has the necessary bioreactors, it will be a slam dunk.
The Cow That Could Feed the Planet|Aryn Baker/Maastricht, Netherlands|November 2, 2021|Time
Its effectiveness as invasive species control may be debatable, but its value as pure gonzo fun looks to be a slam dunk.
10 ways people hunt and fish without bullets or hooks|Steven Hill/Field & Stream|October 4, 2021|Popular-Science
“There’s no slam dunk because ultimately some court of appeal will have to decide whether in fact Hughes was subject to 1090,” Cabrera said.
The City Is Betting on This Law to Get it Out of 101 Ash, Civic Center Deals|Lisa Halverstadt|July 2, 2021|Voice of San Diego
Even then, the drug won’t be a slam dunk for everyone with Alzheimer’s.
The First Treatment for Alzheimer’s Disease Is Here|Alice Park|June 7, 2021|Time

With Macy's level of experience—with kernel coding and network stacks in particular—the project looked like a slam dunk.
Buffer overruns, license violations, and bad code: FreeBSD 13’s close call|Jim Salter|March 26, 2021|Ars Technica
That may be, but experts say that “similarities” to other attacks is hardly a slam dunk.
FBI Won’t Stop Blaming North Korea for Sony Hack -- Despite New Evidence|Shane Harris|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And the information that the FBI has presented so far strikes many experts as hardly a slam dunk against Pyongyang.
Cyberwar on North Korea Could Be Illegal|Shane Harris|December 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Apparently, 2016 is not shaping up as a Democratic slam dunk.
2016 Is No Democratic Slam Dunk|Lloyd Green|December 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Even as a Democrat, I am rooting for the GOP to seize this slam-dunk opportunity.
To Make Their Victory Durable, the GOP Must Fix the Minimum Wage|Dmitri Mehlhorn|November 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
For Best Actor in a Musical, Neil Patrick Harris seems like a slam dunk for Hedwig and the Angry Inch.
A Tony Voter on Bryan Cranston’s Overrated LBJ, Neil Patrick Harris’s Underwhelming Hedwig|Michael Musto|June 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He always looks like he's about to slam-dunk your ass, and he's really into raising his voice for dramatic effect.
Little Brother|Cory Doctorow
Kurt said that the anarchist bookstore would be a slam dunk, but it turned out to be the hardest sell of all.
Someone Comes to Town, Someone Leaves Town|Cory Doctorow

British Dictionary definitions for slam dunk

slam dunk

noun

basketball a scoring shot in which a player jumps up and forces the ball down through the basket

informal a task so easy that success in it is deemed a certainty

verb slam-dunk

basketball to jump up and force (a ball) through a basket

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with slam dunk

slam dunk

A forceful, dramatic move, as in That indictment was a slam dunk if ever there was one. This expression is also often put as a verb, slam-dunk, meaning “make a forceful move against someone,” as in This is a great chance for us to slam-dunk the opposition. The idiom comes from basketball, where it refers to a dramatic shot in which the ball is thrust into the basket from above the rim. It was transferred to other activities from about 1980 on.

slam dunk

Origin of slam dunk

OTHER WORDS FROM slam dunk

Words nearby slam dunk

Other definitions for slam dunk (2 of 2)

Words related to slam dunk

How to use slam dunk in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for slam dunk

Other Idioms and Phrases with slam dunk