spasm
Americannoun
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Pathology. a sudden, abnormal, involuntary muscular contraction, consisting of a continued muscular contraction tonic spasm or of a series of alternating muscular contractions and relaxations clonic spasm.
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any sudden, brief spell of great energy, activity, feeling, etc.
verb (used without object)
noun
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an involuntary muscular contraction, esp one resulting in cramp or convulsion
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a sudden burst of activity, emotion, etc
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of spasm
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English spasme, spasom, from Old French (e)spasme and Latin spasmus, from Greek spasmós “convulsion,” derivative of spân “to draw (a sword), pull out, tear out, suck in, slurp down”
Explanation
A spasm is a sudden constriction of a muscle or blood vessel. This idea can be generalized to anything that occurs suddenly and lasts a short while. Except for a brief spasm of yard work, you had a perfectly lazy Sunday. The Greeks had a word called spasmós, which meant "to cramp or convulse." It also meant "to tear away or violently pull," which, if you've ever suffered a muscle spasm you know is a good definition. The word had a physical meaning up until around 1817, when it came to include the abstract. When you were invited to go hiking in the redwood forest, you could hardly control your spasms of joy. Make sure you stretch before hiking, so you don't get muscle spasms.
Vocabulary lists containing spasm
Hatchet
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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.
Alan's friendship with Adrian, who at the time was a bassist in The Spasm Band, led to him fulfilling his life-long ambition of performing on stage with a band.
From BBC • Oct. 6, 2023
In June, Kirk will take over Spasso House, the U.S. embassy just a mile from the Kremlin, known to some of the inmates as Spasm House.
From Time Magazine Archive
Spasm of the sterno-maxillaris muscle has been witnessed, and the animal was unable to close the jaws until the muscle became relaxed.
From Special Report on Diseases of the Horse by Michener, Charles B.
Spasm of the neck of the bladder.—This may be due to spinal irritation or a reflex from intestinal irritation, and is manifested by frequent but ineffectual attempts to urinate.
From Special Report on Diseases of the Horse by Michener, Charles B.
On the Second Day he could look at Solid Food without having a Spasm.
From People You Know by Ade, George
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.
