# slam

Pronunciation: say "SLAM" /slæm/

## Verb

1. To close something with sudden force, making a sharp bang.
   - Simple: To shut something hard so it makes a loud bang.
   - _He slammed the car door and stormed off down the street._
   - _Please don't slam the gate; the noise wakes the baby._
2. To set or throw something into a place with force and a loud noise.
   - Simple: To put something down hard so it makes a loud noise.
   - _Workers slam the crates against the wall to test their strength._
   - _He slammed the report onto his boss's desk._
5. To hit with great force, using a tool or other implement.
   - Simple: To hit something hard using a tool or object.
   - _In the final minute she managed to slam in a rebound with her stick for the winning goal._
   - _The blacksmith slammed at the glowing iron until it began to flatten._
6. To collide with something abruptly and with great force.
   - Simple: To crash hard against something all at once.
   - _The car slammed into the guardrail at high speed._
   - _Huge waves slam against the cliffs during winter storms._
7. To criticize harshly; to speak badly of. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: To say very bad things about someone or something.
   - _Voters slam politicians who break their promises._
   - _The senator slammed the proposal as reckless and short-sighted._
8. To defeat or overcome an opponent in a match or contest. *(slang)*
   - Simple: To beat someone easily in a game or match.
   - _Top seeds slam weaker sides early in the tournament._
   - _The champions slammed their rivals in straight sets._
9. To force the basketball down through the rim with a powerful dunk.
   - Simple: To push the basketball down through the hoop with great force.
   - _The forward rose above the defense and slammed it home._
   - _Players who can slam draw the biggest cheers._
14. To overwhelm with a heavy workload; to keep extremely busy. *(colloquial, US)*
   - Simple: To keep someone very busy with a lot of work.
   - _The holiday rush slammed every department in the store._
   - _Back-to-back deadlines slam the design team each spring._
15. To drink down quickly; to gulp in one go.
   - Simple: To drink something very fast, all at once.
   - _She slammed a glass of orange juice and rushed to class._
   - _The friends slam their coffees and head out the door._
16. To compete in a poetry slam, performing original work to be scored by judges or the audience.
   - Simple: To take part in a poetry contest where people read poems out loud and get scores.
   - _Poets slam competitively at venues across the country._
   - _He started slamming after seeing a televised competition._
20. To have sex with someone in a rough, forceful manner. *(slang)*
   - Simple: To have sex with someone in a rough, forceful way.
   - _He boasted about slamming his girlfriend._
   - _They slam each other roughly behind closed doors._
21. To strike someone hard enough to kill them or leave them unable to move for some time. *(slang)*
   - Simple: To hit someone so hard that they die or cannot move for a while.
   - _The gang threatened to slam anyone who talked to the police._
   - _A single blow slammed the fighter unconscious for several minutes._
22. To inject a drug directly into a vein. *(slang)*
   - Simple: To put a drug straight into a vein with a needle.
   - _Addicts sometimes slam several times a day._
   - _She admitted to slamming the drug for years._
25. To beat opponents at cards without allowing them a single trick in the hand or deal.
   - Simple: In card games, to beat the other players by winning every round of a hand.
   - _He slammed the visiting team without dropping a single trick._
   - _If you play carefully, you can slam them and take the whole hand._
26. In bridge, to make a slam bid: committing to a small slam (six) or grand slam (seven).
   - Simple: In the card game bridge, to bid to win nearly all or all of the rounds in a hand.
   - _Holding two long suits, the pair chose to slam._
   - _Good players slam only when the points clearly justify it._
27. To switch a customer's service, such as telephone service, to a different provider without the customer's permission.
   - Simple: To switch a customer to a different phone or service company without asking them first.
   - _Regulators fined the carrier for slamming subscribers._
   - _Some firms slam customers and then deny doing it._

## Noun

3. The sharp bang and jolt caused by closing a door or similar object with great force.
   - Simple: The loud bang made when a door is shut hard.
   - _The slam of the screen door echoed across the yard._
   - _Each slam of the locker shook the whole metal frame._
4. A sudden, forceful impact or blow.
   - Simple: A sudden, hard hit against something.
   - _The slam of the truck into the barrier crumpled the metal._
   - _He staggered from the slam of the wrestler's body against his._
10. A forceful downward dunk through the basketball hoop.
   - Simple: A forceful basketball shot pushed straight down through the hoop.
   - _His two-handed slam brought the whole arena to its feet._
   - _The replay showed the slam in slow motion._
11. A pointed insult or cutting remark. *(colloquial, US)*
   - Simple: A rude or hurtful remark aimed at someone.
   - _Her review contained more than one slam at the author's style._
   - _The comedian's set was full of slams aimed at local politicians._
12. The feat of winning every event in a year or season, or every major or designated one, sometimes with a single exception.
   - Simple: Winning all, or all but one, of the main events in one year or sports season.
   - _A calendar-year slam in golf has eluded even the best players._
   - _By also taking the last race in October, the team made it a slam for the season._
13. One of the major championship tournaments that make up the yearly Grand Slam.
   - Simple: One of the four biggest tennis tournaments held each year.
   - _He had never won a slam until his late twenties._
   - _The schedule packs all four slams into a single year._
17. A live competition in which poets perform original work and receive scores from judges or the audience.
   - Simple: A live event where poets read their own poems out loud and judges or the crowd give them scores.
   - _The monthly slam drew performers from across the region._
   - _Regional slams have launched several spoken-word careers._
18. In bridge, a bid of six (small slam) or seven (grand slam) in a chosen suit or in no trump.
   - Simple: In the card game bridge, a high bid to win nearly all or all of the rounds in a hand.
   - _The pair bid a small slam and collected all twelve tricks._
   - _Their slam went down when the trumps split badly._
19. A card game played all at once without separate turns, in which players race to get rid of their cards as fast as the rules allow.
   - Simple: A fast card game with no turns, where everyone plays at the same time to get rid of their cards first.
   - _A round of slam can end in under a minute._
   - _They taught the kids slam on the long drive home._
23. A subgenre of death metal blended with hardcore punk, built around midtempo rhythms, breakdowns, and palm-muted riffs.
   - Simple: A type of heavy metal music with slow, heavy beats and chugging guitar parts.
   - _Their new album leans heavily into slam._
   - _Fans of slam packed the small venue._
24. In card games, the winning or losing of all the tricks in a single game.
   - Simple: In card games, the result of one side winning or losing every round in a single game.
   - _Their slam in the final hand sealed the match._
   - _A slam doubles the points in this version of the game._
28. A notebook passed among friends, especially schoolchildren, for each to write comments, answers, or messages in.
   - Simple: A notebook that friends pass around so each person can write notes and answers in it.
   - _Everyone scribbled secrets into the slam during lunch._
   - _By June, the slam was full of inside jokes and signatures._

## Noun

29. An old trick-taking card game, also known as ruff and honors. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: An old card game from long ago, also called ruff and honors.
   - _The squire and his guests played slam late into the evening._
   - _She learned slam from her grandmother before whist came into fashion._
30. A clumsy, shuffling man: one who walks in a loose, ungainly way. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: A clumsy man who walks in a slow, awkward, shuffling way.
   - _A gawky slam stumbled through the market and knocked over a basket of apples._
   - _The innkeeper's son had grown into a lazy slam who dragged his feet everywhere._

## Other meanings

- (noun) Yellowish waste left over from making alum, made up of iron silicate.

## Origin

**Meanings 1–11, 13–17, 20–23, 27–28** — From an unrecorded Middle English *slammen, apparently from a Scandinavian source, ultimately from Old Norse slæma ("to slam, swing a weapon, strike an object out of reach"). It is related to forms like Norwegian slamre and Swedish slamra ("to pound, beat, rattle").
**Meanings 12, 18–19, 24–26, 29** — The origin is unknown and long debated, though it was perhaps reinforced by Etymology 1. It is a doublet of chelem.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/slam (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).