cram

See also: Cram

English

Etymology

From (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Middle English crammen, from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Old English crammian (“to cram; stuff”), from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Proto-Germanic *krammōną, a secondary verb derived from *krimmaną (“to stuff”), from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Proto-Indo-European *ger- (“to assemble; collect; gather”). Compare Old English crimman (“to cram; stuff; insert; press; bruise”), Icelandic kremja (“to squeeze; crush; bruise”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kɹæm/
• Rhymes: -æm

Verb

1. (transitive) To press, force, or drive, particularly in filling, or in thrusting one thing into another; to stuff; to fill to superfluity.

   to cram fruit into a basket; to cram a room with people

   • 2012, Andrew Martin, Underground Overground: A passenger's history of the Tube, Profile Books, →ISBN, page 244:

     Are we to blame Livingstone for Tube overcrowding? In part, yes, but as Sir John Eliot had observed in 1955, while Chairman of the London Transport Executive: 'They're not crammed in. They cram themselves in.'

2. (transitive) To fill with food to satiety; to stuff.

   The boy crammed himself with cake

3. (transitive) To put hastily through an extensive course of memorizing or study, as in preparation for an examination.

   A pupil is crammed by his tutor.

4. (intransitive) To study hard; to swot.
5. (intransitive) To eat greedily, and to satiety; to stuff oneself.
6. (intransitive, dated, British slang) To lie; to intentionally not tell the truth.
7. (transitive, dated, British slang) To make (a person) believe false or exaggerated tales.

Derived terms

• crammable, crammer, cram school, cram-full, cram session

Translations

to press, force, or drive, particularly in filling, or in thrusting one thing into another

• Aromanian: ndes
• Bulgarian: натъпквам (bg) (natǎpkvam), наблъсквам (bg) (nablǎskvam)
• Burmese: သိပ် (my) (sip)
• Catalan: embotir (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 填滿／填满 (zh) (tiánmǎn), 填满 (zh) (tiánmǎn)

• Dutch: volproppen (nl)
• Finnish: ahtaa (fi), sulloa (fi), tunkea (fi), survoa
• French: bourrer (fr), ficher (fr), foutre (fr), emmancher (fr), fourrer (fr)
• Galician: embutir
• German: stopfen (de), vollpacken
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hungarian: töm (hu), megtöm (hu), teletöm (hu), beletöm (hu), zsúfol (hu), telezsúfol, teletölt (hu), telerak, belezsúfol (hu)
• Italian: stivare (it)
• Japanese: 詰め込む (つめこむ, tsumekomu)
• Korean: 쑤셔 넣다 (ssusyeo neota)
• Latin: stīpō
• Maori: whakapuru, puru
• Portuguese: entupir (pt)
• Romanian: înghesui (ro), îndesa (ro)
• Russian: вти́скивать (ru) impf (vtískivatʹ), вти́снуть (ru) pf (vtísnutʹ), набива́ть (ru) impf (nabivátʹ), наби́ть (ru) pf (nabítʹ), запи́хивать (ru) impf (zapíxivatʹ), запихну́ть (ru) pf (zapixnútʹ)
• Spanish: atestar (es), atiborrar (es), embutir (es)
• Swedish: stoppa (sv), trycka (sv)
• Turkish: tıkmak (tr)
• Vietnamese: nhồi (vi), nhét (vi)

to fill with food to satiety; to stuff

• Bulgarian: преяждам (bg) (prejaždam), натъпквам се (natǎpkvam se)
• Catalan: empatxar-se (ca)
• Finnish: täyttää (fi)
• French: gaver (fr), bourrer (fr), farcir (fr), truffer (fr)
• German: mästen (de), vollstopfen (de)
• Hungarian: töm (hu), megtöm (hu), teletöm (hu)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Maori: hāpuku
• Portuguese: empanturrar (pt)
• Russian: (transitive, "feed plenty of") отка́рмливать (ru) impf (otkármlivatʹ), откорми́ть (ru) pf (otkormítʹ) (на убо́й), (intransitive, "eat plenty of") наеда́ться (ru) impf (najedátʹsja), нае́сться (ru) pf (najéstʹsja) (до́сыта)
• Spanish: atiborrar (es) (colloquial), atracar (es) (colloquial), atestar (es) (colloquial)
• Turkish: tıkmak (tr)

to put hastily through an extensive course of memorizing or study

• Bulgarian: назубрям (bg) (nazubrjam)
• Dutch: stampen (nl)
• Finnish: päntätä (fi)
• French: bachoter (fr)
• Galician: chapar
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hungarian: fejébe ver, bemagoltat, magoltat
• Ido: instruktegar (io)
• Russian: зубри́ть (ru) impf (zubrítʹ), вы́зубрить (ru) pf (výzubritʹ)
• Turkish: ineklemek (tr), hatmetmek (tr), hafızlamak

study hard — see swot

to eat greedily, and to satiety; to stuff

• Bulgarian: натъпквам се (natǎpkvam se)
• Finnish: ahmia (fi)
• French: se gaver (fr), se bourrer (fr), se remplir (fr), (colloquial) bâfrer (fr)
• Hungarian: tömi magát, zabál (hu), fal (hu), degeszre eszi magát
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Maori: hāpuku
• Portuguese: entupir-se
• Russian: пожира́ть (ru) impf (požirátʹ), сожра́ть (ru) pf (sožrátʹ)
• Turkish: tıkmak (tr), tıkınmak (tr)

to make crude preparation for a special occasion

• French: bâcler (fr), (slang) bachoter (fr)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hungarian: összecsap (hu)

Noun

cram (countable and uncountable, plural crams)

1. The act of cramming (forcing or stuffing something).
2. Information hastily memorized.

   a cram from an examination

3. (weaving) A warp having more than two threads passing through each dent or split of the reed.
4. (dated, British slang) A lie; a falsehood.
   • 1864, Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu, Uncle Silas:

     It is awful, an old un like that telling such crams as she do.

   • 1894, Talbot Baines Reed, Tom, Dick, and Harry, page 107:

     Shut up, and don't tell crams.

5. (uncountable) A mathematical board game in which players take turns placing dominoes horizontally or vertically until no more can be placed, the loser being the player who cannot continue.
6. A small friendship book with limited space for people to enter their information.
   • 2017, Mark Duffett, Fan Identities and Practices in Context: Dedicated to Music (page 194)

     Regular friendship books had a variety of variations, such as slams, crams, and decos.

   • 2019, Manjit Bal, Lovingly Yours - Penpals:

     Pen pals also make and pass around friendship books, slams and crams. In recent years, pen pal correspondence with prison inmates has gained acceptance on the Internet.

Synonyms

• (lie): see Thesaurus:lie

Translations

the act of cramming

• Bulgarian: блъскане (bg) n (blǎskane), блъсканица (bg) f (blǎskanica)
• Finnish: ahtaminen (fi), sullominen (fi), survominen, tunkeminen (fi), päntätä (fi)
• French: bourrage (fr), remplissage (fr)
• Galician: apiñamento m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hindi: रटना (hi) (raṭnā)
• Hungarian: tömés, megtömés, kitömés, teletömés, telezsúfolás
• Portuguese: entupimento (pt) m
• Russian: да́вка (ru) f (dávka) (people), толкотня́ (ru) f (tolkotnjá) (people)

information hastily memorized; as, a cram from an examination

• Hungarian: magolás
• Portuguese: decoreba (pt) f
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Russian: зубрёжка (ru) f (zubrjóžka)

a warp having more than two threads passing through each dent or split of the reed

• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

Anagrams

• MRCA, Marc, macr-, marc, mrca