Word: jam Part of Speech: noun Etymology: First attested in the early 18th c. as a verb meaning “to press, be pressed, be wedged in”. Compare dialectal jammock (“to press, squeeze, crush into a soft mass, chew food"; also "a soft, pulpy substance”). Perhaps from Middle English chammen, champen ("to bite upon something, gnash the teeth"; whence modern champ, chomp), of uncertain origin; probably originally onomatopoeic. The "performance" sense is first attested with regards to jazz in 1929, and its origin, though uncertain, is likely metaphorical, "something sweet made by the combination of many things", with influence from jamboree. Pronunciation: /ˈd͡ʒæm/, [ˈd͡ʒeəm] ~ [ˈd͡ʒɛəm], /ˈd͡ʒam/, /ˈd͡ʒaːm/, /ˈdʒæːm/ 1. A sweet mixture of fruit boiled with sugar and allowed to congeal. Often spread on bread or toast or used in jam tarts Labels: countable, uncommon, uncountable Example: He is allergic to jam. Example: She loves eating jam for breakfast in hotels. 2. A difficult situation. Labels: countable Example: It's a blackmail ring, and the district attorneys get a share of the loot. […] Well, they got him in the same kind of jam, and soaked him to the tune of three hundred and eighty-six thousand. Example: She was married when we first met / Soon to be divorced / I helped her out of a jam, I guess / But I used a little too much force 3. A difficult situation. Labels: countable Example: The pitcher's in a jam now, having walked the bases loaded with the cleanup hitter coming to bat. 4. A blockage, congestion, or immobilization. Labels: countable Example: a jam on the 101 South, blocking the two right lanes [radio report] Example: a jam of logs in a river 5. An informal, impromptu performance or rehearsal. Labels: common, countable 6. A song; a track. Labels: broadly, countable, informal Example: pump up the jam Example: And a mix CD titled "Summer Jamz 2000." Jamz is spelled with a "z". 7. An informal event where people brainstorm and collaborate on projects. Labels: broadly, countable Example: We came up with some new ideas at the game jam. Example: […] a day at new Farm Park with an art jam, fursuit games, and a nerf war, ending in the evening at the strike Wintergarden bowling center. 8. That which one particularly prefers, desires, enjoys, or cares about. Labels: countable, slang Example: Teaching is my jam. 9. A forceful dunk. Labels: countable 10. A play during which points can be scored. Labels: countable Example: Toughie scored four points in that jam. 11. Any of several manoeuvres requiring wedging of an extremity into a tight space. Labels: countable Example: I used a whole series of fist and foot jams in that crack. 12. The tree Acacia acuminata, with fruity-smelling hard timber. Labels: Australia, countable, uncountable 13. Luck. Labels: UK, countable, slang, uncountable Example: He's got more jam than Waitrose. 14. Balls, bollocks, courage, machismo. Labels: Canada, countable, slang, uncountable Example: I don't think he has the jam. 15. Sexual relations or the contemplation of them. Labels: countable, slang, uncountable 16. Something enjoyable; a delightful situation or outcome. Labels: countable, slang, uncountable Example: ’Tis fine to be a pretty girl, or just a gay and witty girl, And obviously to be both is rightly counted jam, But even more desirable, and clearly less acquirable, Is that mysterious quality denominated glam.