Dictionary

clam up en · VERB

Pronunciation

• (Australia) audio

Etymology

By analogy with a clam closing itself. Compare clamshell (“mouth”), clam (“mouth”).

Meanings

1. (informal, intransitive) To become silent; to stop talking.
   • “You can't clam up on me, punk! I know you're hiding something!” “Okay! Okay! I'm the one taking dumps in the urinals! I call it an "inside the park home run"! (sobbing)” “Smith, good work. Dick, that's a funny name for it.” 2016 June 13, Charles Suozzi, “Gift Me Liberty” (6:11 from the start), in American Dad!, season 13, episode 20, spoken by Stan Smith (Seth MacFarlane):
   • Maybe he … or she … was a witness who refused to clam up … a whistle blower … 1986, Paul Chadwick, Concrete: Under the Desert Stars, Dark Horse Books:
   • Teenagers' father. Alright, Matt, I think you've made your point. Matt Foley: Dad, I sincerely wish you'd do everyone a great service, and clam up! 1993, “Matt Foley: A Scary Story on Halloween”, in Saturday Night Live, season 19, spoken by Matt Foley (Chris Farley):
2. (ambitransitive) To make or become clammy.

Forms

Antonyms

talk

Synonyms

shut up like a clam · shut up

Translations (25)

fr fermer son claque-merde (become silent) · se jaskkodit (become silent) · fi hiljetä (become silent) · el σωπαίνω (become silent) · nl zwijgen (become silent) · ru замолка́ть (become silent) · ja 黙ってしまう (become silent) · pt fechar-se (become silent) · se jávohuvvat (become silent) · fr fermer son clapet (become silent) · de schweigen (become silent) · nl zijn mond houden (become silent) · it tacere (become silent) · fr la fermer (become silent) · fr la boucler (become silent) · br tevel (become silent) · es callarse (become silent) · swb uɓuriha (become silent) · ru замолча́ть (become silent) · kk үндемеу (become silent) · li zwiege (become silent) · mi whakangūngū (become silent) · eo silenti (become silent) · sv tiga (become silent) · zro yánunu (become silent)