Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- intransitive verb To force, press, or squeeze (something) into an insufficient or barely sufficient space; stuff.
- intransitive verb To feed a large amount of food to (an animal).
- intransitive verb To fill (oneself or one's stomach, for example) with food.
- intransitive verb To move into and fully occupy a space.
- intransitive verb To study hastily for an impending examination.
- noun Hasty study for an imminent examination.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun In weaving, a warp having more than two threads in each dent or split of the reed.
- noun The act or the result of cramming the memory; information acquired hurriedly and not assimilated.
- noun A lie.
- noun A densely packed gathering or crowd; a crush; a ‘jam.’
- To press or drive, particularly thrust (one thing), into another forcibly; stuff; crowd: as, to
cram things into a basket or bag. - To fill with more than can be properly, conveniently, or comfortably contained; fill to repletion; overcrowd: as, to
cram a room with people. - To fill with food beyond what is necessary, or to satiety; stuff.
- To endeavor to qualify (a pupil or one's self) for an examination, or other special purpose, in a comparatively short time, by storing the memory with information, not so much with a view to real learning as to passing the examination; coach.
- To tell lies to; fill up with false stories.
- To eat greedily or to satiety; stuff one's self.
- To store the memory hastily with facts, for the purpose of passing an examination or for some other immediate use; in general, to acquire knowledge hurriedly by a forced process, without assimilating it: as, to
cram for a civil-service examination; to cram for a lecture.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- intransitive verb To eat greedily, and to satiety; to stuff.
- intransitive verb colloq. To make crude preparation for a special occasion, as an examination, by a hasty and extensive course of memorizing or study.
- noun The act of cramming.
- noun colloq. Information hastily memorized.
- noun (Weaving) A warp having more than two threads passing through each dent or split of the reed.
- transitive verb To press, force, or drive, particularly in filling, or in thrusting one thing into another; to stuff; to crowd; to fill to superfluity.
- transitive verb To fill with food to satiety; to stuff.
- transitive verb To put hastily through an extensive course of memorizing or study, as in preparation for an examination.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun The act of cramming.
- noun Information hastily memorized; as, a cram from an examination.
- noun A warp having more than two threads passing through each dent or split of the reed.
- verb To
press ,force , ordrive , particularly infilling , or inthrusting one thing into another; tostuff ; tocrowd ; tofill tosuperfluity ; as, to cram anything into a basket; to cram a room with people. - verb To fill with food to
satiety ; to stuff. - verb To put
hastily through an extensive course of memorizing or study, as in preparation for an examination; as, a pupil is crammed by his tutor. - verb
Study hard,swot . - verb To
eat greedily , and to satiety; to stuff. - verb To make crude
preparation for a special occasion, as an examination, by a hasty and extensive course ofmemorizing or study.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- verb prepare (students) hastily for an impending exam
- verb put something somewhere so that the space is completely filled
- verb crowd or pack to capacity
- verb study intensively, as before an exam
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
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Examples
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The French word cramer does not mean "to study intensively for an exam" -- although one could argue that "to cram" is to be put to the TEST.
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The French word cramer does not mean "to study intensively for an exam" -- although one could argue that "to cram" is to be put to the TEST.
French Word-A-Day: 2009
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The French word cramer does not mean "to study intensively for an exam" -- although one could argue that "to cram" is to be put to the TEST.
French Word-A-Day: 2009
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This approach called a "cram down" cuts through legal red tape and give consumers more bargaining power with banks and other mortgage lenders.
Peter Dreier: Want to Help Homeowners? Replace the Mansion Subsidy and Require Banks to Act Responsibly Peter Dreier 2011
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This approach called a "cram down" cuts through legal red tape and give consumers more bargaining power with banks and other mortgage lenders.
Peter Dreier: Want to Help Homeowners? Replace the Mansion Subsidy and Require Banks to Act Responsibly Peter Dreier 2011
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Under the legislation, strapped borrowers could have the principal balance of their mortgage loan reduced by a bankruptcy judge -- known as cram down.
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The bankruptcy legislation will still allow homeowners to renegotiate mortgages in bankruptcy - the so-called cram down provision - but only under strict conditions.
Bankruptcy Bill Watered Down, Still Fiercely Opposed By Banks 2009
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This modification is called a cram down (who gave it that name, Frank Luntz?).
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After dinner, it's time to hit the books again -- at one of Seoul's many so-called cram schools.
Cutthroat Classes 2007
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Mr. Wells has kept these precepts constantly in mind in the preparation of his work, and in the formulation of his plans for its future extension, thereby enhancing the value of the book itself, and at the same time, discouraging the system of pure cram, which is alien to the discipline of biological science.
oroboros commented on the word cram
Marc in reverse:
1. The pulpy residue left after the juice has been pressed from grapes, apples, or other fruits.
2. Brandy distilled from grape or apple residue.
July 30, 2007
bilby commented on the word cram
"FIRST CITIZEN: Care for us! True, indeed! They ne'er cared for us yet. Suffer us to famish, and their storehouses crammed with grain; make edicts for usury, to support usurers; repeal daily any wholesome act established against the rich, and provide more piercing statutes daily to chain up and restrain the poor."
- William Shakespeare, 'The Tragedy of Coriolanus'.
August 28, 2009