clam up

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English

Alternative forms

Etymology

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

Pronunciation

Verb

clam up (third-person singular simple present clams up, present participle clamming up, simple past and past participle clammed up)

  1. (intransitive, informal) To become silent; to stop talking.
    Synonyms: shut up; see also Thesaurus:be quiet
    • 1986, Paul Chadwick, Concrete: Under the Desert Stars, Dark Horse Books:
      Maybe he … or she … was a witness who refused to clam up … a whistle blower …
    • 1993, “Matt Foley: A Scary Story on Halloween”, in Saturday Night Live‎, season 19, spoken by Matt Foley (Chris Farley):
      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!
  2. (transitive, intransitive) To make or become clammy.

Antonyms

Translations

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