slam
1 Americanverb (used with or without object)
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slams,
present (3rd person singular)
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slammed,
past participle, past
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slamming
present participle
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to shut with force and noise.
to slam the door.
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to dash, strike, knock, thrust, throw, slap down, etc., with violent and noisy impact.
He slammed his books upon the table.
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Informal. to criticize harshly; attack verbally.
He slammed my taste mercilessly.
noun
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a violent and noisy closing, dashing, or impact.
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the noise so made.
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Slang. Usually the slam slammer.
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Informal. a harsh criticism; verbal attack.
I am sick of your slams.
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Informal.
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Also called poetry slam. a competitive, usually boisterous poetry reading.
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a usually competitive performance involving multiple performers with short acts: a tap dance slam.
puppet slams;
a tap dance slam.
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noun
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the winning or bidding of all the tricks or all the tricks but one in a deal.
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an old type of card game associated with ruff.
verb
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to cause (a door or window) to close noisily and with force or (of a door, etc) to close in this way
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(tr) to throw (something) down noisily and violently
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slang (tr) to criticize harshly
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informal (intr; usually foll by into or out of) to go (into or out of a room, etc) in violent haste or anger
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(tr) to strike with violent force
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informal (tr) to defeat easily
noun
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the act or noise of slamming
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slang harsh criticism or abuse
noun
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the winning of all (grand slam) or all but one (little slam or small slam) of the 13 tricks at bridge or whist
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the bid to do so in bridge See grand slam little slam
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an old card game
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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slamsimple
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slamssimple
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have slammedperfect
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has slammedperfect
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am slammingprogressive
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are slammingprogressive
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is slammingprogressive
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have been slammingperfect progressive
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has been slammingperfect progressive
Past
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slammedsimple
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had slammedperfect
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was slammingprogressive
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were slammingprogressive
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had been slammingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of slam1
First recorded in 1650–60; perhaps from Scandinavian; compare Icelandic, Norwegian, Swedish slamra “to bang (a door), slam”
Origin of slam2
First recorded in 1660–70; perhaps special use of slam 1
Explanation
To slam is to close something forcefully and loudly, like when you slam your door angrily, or slam the freezer door quickly so your sister won't see the ice cream sandwiches you bought. If you slam your finger in the door, it's going to hurt. And, if you slam your backpack onto the table, you may damage your laptop. The word slam implies violence and force. As a noun, a slam is the action or sound of slamming something. There's also a "poetry slam," when poets compete by reciting their work in front of an audience, and slam-dancing, also known as moshing, in which dancers slam into each other.
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.
See Examples For:
One of the beefs homeowners have with PWCs—and so called “wake boats”—is that the waves they generate can slam moored boats into docks and erode shorelines.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026
I just want you to amplify how important it is when you slam the courthouse doors, whether it’s preemption or standing, in environment-land, that’s it.
From Slate ● Sep. 22, 2026
Survivors and the insurance industry slam purported last-minute bills to shift wildfire costs away from utilities.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026
But despite feeling that he had made his best recovery from a slam in two years post-Wimbledon, Djokovic recently revealed his struggles with an ongoing health condition that causes particular issues in hot, humid conditions.
From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2026
Was it rude to slam the door in someone’s face?
From "Willodeen" by Katherine Applegate
Nearby a large excavator slams its shovel into another building's remains.
From Barron's ● Jul. 6, 2026
The Court’s decision slams the door to such judicial misadventures.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2026
On stage, Cameron Winter leads an overall enthralling performance, as the group slams out songs back-to-back with little to say in between; no shenanigans, just a top-notch show.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 9, 2026
Another idea suggests the brightness spikes occur when the blast wave from the explosion slams into dense shells of gas surrounding the star.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 11, 2026
Her anger is the simmering kind that bubbles beneath the surface until it finally boils over and she slams a door in your face.
From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller
Head coach Dan Quinn ripped off his headset and slammed it to the ground.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026
The powerful surf exacerbated by the morning's high tide slammed into coastal communities, including Long Beach, where signficiant sections of the boardwalk crumbled under the pounding waves and several homes suffered serious structural damage.
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
A beat later and the Ravens’ window would have slammed shut.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026
I sat on a hard bench, facing the sliding door, which slammed shut.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026
The elevator doors slammed shut, and it zipped left and then bolted up.
From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton
Plus, American workers are slamming the brakes on switching jobs, and prediction markets are luring traders away from crypto.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 7, 2026
Dramatic video footage from Long Beach shows massive waves slamming into the shoreline and splintering the wood on the boardwalk.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026
The injury will have been caused by her chest slamming into the water.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
After slamming into the Japanese islands and sweeping past Taiwan's northern tip, Bavi is expected to make landfall in eastern China over the weekend.
From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026
Her unexpected yell reminded Nathan of slamming doors and long nights of silent solitude in his old room playing video games.
From "Healer of the Water Monster" by Brian Young
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