noun
flam
flam
noun
1
A lie or a deceptive trick meant to mislead someone.
"His excuse turned out to be nothing but a flam to get out of trouble."
2
In drumming, a quick pair of strokes — a soft grace note right before a louder main beat — played so close together they sound almost like one note.
"The drummer opened the fill with a sharp flam on the snare."
verb
1
To deceive someone with a made-up story.
"He tried to flam his boss with a story about a family emergency."
How to Use Flam
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishEither an old word for a lie/trick, or (in drumming) a two-stroke ornament that sounds like one thick beat.
Common pairings
a flam on the snare
nothing but flam
Word Forms
flammed past tense, flammed past tense, flams plural, flams plural, flams singular, flams singular
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His excuse turned out to be nothing but a _____ to get out of trouble.
Etymology
Comes from the older word "flim-flam," meaning a deceptive trick or nonsense talk.