clambake

[klam-beyk] /ˈklæmˌbeɪk/
noun
1.
a picnic or social gathering at the seashore at which clams and other seafood are baked, sometimes with corn and other items, traditionally on hot stones under a covering of seaweed.
2.
Informal. any social gathering, especially a very noisy one.
Origin
1825-35, Americanism; clam1 + bake
Examples from the web for clambake
  • It simply brought indoors the technology of the luau pit or the clambake.
  • At night, the beach is the site of a signature summer pastime: a bonfire-fueled clambake.
  • There were baseball diamonds, clambake sheds, pony rides and a boat shaped snack shop.
  • Every year he gives a clambake for about five hundred people.
British Dictionary definitions for clambake

clambake

/ˈklæmˌbeɪk/
noun (US & Canadian)
1.
a picnic, often by the sea, at which clams, etc, are baked
2.
an informal party
Word Origin and History for clambake
n.

1835, American English, from clam (n.) + bake (n.). By 1937 in jazz slang transferred to "an enjoyable time generally," especially "jam session."

Slang definitions & phrases for clambake

clambake

noun
  1. Any gathering, meeting, convention, party, etc, esp a happy and noisy one (1940s+)
  2. jam session (1930s+ Jazz musicians)

Encyclopedia Article for clambake

seafood picnic traditional in the New England region of the United States. Early settlers on the Atlantic Coast adopted and elaborated the practice from the coastal Indians, who steamed shellfish over hot stones under a covering of seaweed. Clambakes, best undertaken on a large scale, have long been a feature of civic and fraternal celebrations in areas where clams, lobsters, and fish are abundant

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