ram

RAM noun · noun · verb · Ram proper noun · adjective

RAM/ɹæm/

Pluralrams, RAMs, Rams

Verbrams, ramming, rammed

27 meanings of ram

Practice

1
computer memorynoun · RAMacronym
Short for random-access memory: the part of a computer that holds the programs and data it is using right now.
My laptop needs more RAM to run this game.
This phone has eight gigabytes of RAM.
UsageUse more RAM or less RAM to talk about the amount of memory.
2
male sheepnouncountable
A male sheep, usually one that is able to father lambs.
Our farm has one ram and forty ewes.
The ram kept the other sheep away from the gate.
Note
3
smash intoverbtransitive or intransitive
To crash into something, usually on purpose, to damage it or stop it from working.
The driver tried to ram the police car and escape.
A runaway truck rammed into the gate and knocked it flat.
UsageRam something, or ram into it.
Similarhit, strike, crash, smash, collide
4
shoveverbfigurativelytransitive
To push or force something hard into or through something, also used about forcing plans or ideas on people.
Don't ram the key into the lock like that, or it will break.
He rammed his clothes into the small bag and zipped it shut.
UsageOften ram something through.
Similarforce, push, cram, shove, thrust
Note
5
battering toolnouncountable
A heavy tool driven against a door to force it open, also called a battering ram.
The firefighters used a ram to open the locked door.
Police broke into the house with a ram just after sunrise.
6
SayRAHMUS/ɹɑm/UK/ɹɑːm/
Hindu godproper noun · Ram
Another spelling of Rāma: a Hindu god, the hero of the Ramayana story.
During Diwali, the family lit lamps to honor the god Ram.
The children acted out the story of Ram at the temple.
Note
7
verbtransitive
To push or pound something down hard so it is packed tight or fixed in place.
Ram the soil around the post so it doesn't move.
The builders rammed the gravel into the trench.
Similartamp, pack, pound, compact, drive

Less common meanings

8
constellationproper noun · Ram
The group of stars called Aries, or the star sign with the same name.
With a star chart, we found the Ram in the night sky.
The moon passed through the Ram last night.
SimilarAries
9
attack shipnounhistoricalcountable
A strong point on the front of a warship used to smash into other ships, or a ship built with one.
The ram steamed straight at the enemy ship.
About a couple of miles out lay an ironclad very low in the water, almost, to my brother's perception, like a water-logged ship. This was the ram Thunder Child.
1898, H.G. Wells, The War of the WorldsHere, ram means a warship built with a strong point for smashing other ships.
Note
10
hydraulic pistonnouncountable
A rod in a machine that moves in and out, pushed by liquid under pressure.
The ram on the dump truck pushed the bed up to tip out the sand.
Oil leaked from the ram, so the machine could not lift anything.
Similarpiston, plunger
11
thrust (sex)verbslangintransitive
To push hard and fast during sex.
She asked him not to ram so hard.
Through the thin wall, the neighbors heard the bed creak as he rammed away.
UsageA rude word; thrust is more polite.
Similarthrust, pound
12
nouncountable
An act of crashing into or pushing hard against something.
With one more ram, the truck smashed through the fence.
The captain ordered a ram, and the ship turned toward the enemy.
13
hammer weightnouncountable
The heavy weight that strikes the blow in a machine that pounds things, like a pile driver.
The ram dropped onto the post and pushed it deeper into the ground.
Workers raised the ram again for the next blow.
Similarhammer
14
atomic massnoun · RAMacronym
Short for relative atomic mass: average mass of an element's atoms compared with one twelfth of a carbon-12 atom's mass.
Look up the RAM of each element in the table at the back of the book.
Our teacher showed us how to work out the RAM of chlorine.
Note
15
rancidadjectivedialectalNorthern England
Smelling or tasting bad, like food that has gone bad.
Don't eat that bacon, it smells ram.
The cheese at the back of the fridge had gone ram.
Similarrancid, rank, foul, off
Oppositefresh
Note
16
proper noun
A name for a boy.
17
proper noun
A family name.
18
proper nounUK
Someone linked to the Derby County soccer club, such as a fan, player, or coach.
19
proper noun
Short for Royal Academy of Music: a famous music school in London.
20
proper noun
In the Bible, the son of Hezron and the father of Amminadab.
21
noun
Short for radar-absorbent material: material that soaks up radar waves so things are harder to find.
22
proper noun
In the Mandaean religion, one of the two people from whom the second generation of humans came.
23
noun
Short for random-access machine: a simple model of a computer used to study how fast programs run.
24
noun
Short for reliability availability maintainability: how dependable a machine or system is and how easy it is to keep working.
25
noun
Short for responsibility assignment matrix: a chart showing who does each task in a project.
26
noun
A weapon the US used against tanks in the Korean War.
27
proper noun
Short for Rise Above Movement: a violent white supremacist group from Southern California.

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of ram apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origins

Meanings 2, 5, 9–10, 12–13

From Old English ramm, meaning a male sheep. The old Germanic word may come from a word meaning "strong".

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

English ram comes from Old English ramm, denoting the animal. en.wiktionary.org
The Germanic animal name may derive from a word meaning strong. kaikki.org

Meanings 3–4, 7, 11

This verb comes from the noun ram.

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

The verb ram derives from the noun ram. kaikki.org

Meaning 15

Probably from an Old Norse word meaning "strong" or "bitter".

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

The adjective probably derives from an Old Norse word meaning strong or bitter. kaikki.org

Meaning 8

Named after the animal, the ram.

Checked 3 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

The name derives from the animal ram. en.wiktionary.org

Meaning 6

From the Hindi and Sanskrit name of the god.

Checked 3 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

The source name denotes the Hindu god Rama. en.wiktionary.org