Meaning & use

jam

noun·Everyday

A sweet spread made by boiling fruit and sugar until thick, typically eaten on bread.

See it in a sentence

She spread a generous layer of strawberry jam on her morning toast.

My grandmother makes homemade blackberry jam every summer from berries in her garden.

A note on using this word

In American English, jam contains crushed or whole fruit, while jelly is made only from strained fruit juice.

Words with a similar meaning

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Another way to use it

2. noun

A crowded or blocked situation, such as heavy traffic, or an awkward predicament.

We sat in a traffic jam for over an hour on the way to the airport.

3. verb

To become stuck or wedged, or to cause a device to stop working by an obstruction.

The printer jammed halfway through printing the report.

Make it your own

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