Illustration of clam
- a incurrent orifice
- b siphon
- c excurrent orifice
- d mantle
- e shell
- f foot
often attributive
1
a
: any of numerous edible marine bivalve mollusks living in sand or mud
b
: a freshwater mussel
2
: a stolid or closemouthed person
3
4
informal
: dollar sense 1
Examples of clam in a Sentence
Noun (2)
it must take a whole lot of clams to buy a car like that
Recent Examples on the Web
Matt Moret, New York Times, 1 Feb. 2026
Arsenic spikes in New Zealand’s Waikato River were blamed on invasive clams, and recent Houthi attacks in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait indirectly caused a shift in oceanic cloud formation.
—Rafil Kroll-Zaidi, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
Clio Chang, Curbed, 9 Dec. 2025
Go crabbing, clamming, hiking, or mushroom foraging with a guide, head out for a fat-tire bike ride, or enjoy a beach bonfire, already set up for you, for the coziest way to end a day on the coast.
—Molly Allen, Travel + Leisure, 28 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for clam
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Noun
Then came another jab, and the hairpiece bounced up as if Miller’s scalp was the bottom of a gasping clam.
—Matt Moret, New York Times, 1 Feb. 2026
Arsenic spikes in New Zealand’s Waikato River were blamed on invasive clams, and recent Houthi attacks in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait indirectly caused a shift in oceanic cloud formation.
—Rafil Kroll-Zaidi, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
Verb
Swim in your pool and go clamming.
—Clio Chang, Curbed, 9 Dec. 2025
Go crabbing, clamming, hiking, or mushroom foraging with a guide, head out for a fat-tire bike ride, or enjoy a beach bonfire, already set up for you, for the coziest way to end a day on the coast.
—Molly Allen, Travel + Leisure, 28 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for clam
Cite this Entry
“Clam.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clam. Accessed 4 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
clam
1 of 2 noun1
: any of numerous edible marine mollusks that have two hinged shells and live in sand or mud
2
: a freshwater mussel
clam
2 of 2 verb
clammed; clamming
: to dig or gather clams
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