clammed up

past tense of clam up

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of clammed up Anyone asked by local or national media over the past few months if they’d been invited to the nuptials clammed up quickly. — Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 2 July 2026 On Israel, a lot of candidates have clammed up. — Naaman Zhou, New Yorker, 22 June 2026 The Arrested Development actor clammed up when Smartless cohost Jason Bateman brought up Arnett's ex-wife and their bathroom habits. — Marina Watts, Entertainment Weekly, 22 June 2026 The atmosphere had changed—security kept an eye out for media to turn away at the entrance, and golfers clammed up when asked what was going on at the club. — Dan Alexander, Forbes.com, 18 May 2026 Everyone in the theater clammed up, as if embarrassed to have endorsed Max with laughter. — Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 29 Apr. 2026 But when co-host Maria McErlane looked for details, Norton clammed up. — Joseph Wilkinson, Mercury News, 28 Jan. 2026 The famously outgoing media personality clammed up, on air and off, thanks to a terrifying stranger. — Ross Raihala, Twin Cities, 7 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clammed up
Verb
  • The normally festive and rowdy crowd inside the basketball arena in Dallas quickly hushed as a five-minute memorial video began playing.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 10 Sep. 2026
  • Moments ago, the courtroom was hushed when the mistrial was declared, marking an emotional close for this jury in the nearly six-week trial.
    — Rebecca Cohen, NBC news, 4 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Portions of the river similarly dried up in 2021, 2022 and 2023, even after the state started imposing limits on how much water farmers could take.
    — Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Parts of New Mexico, meanwhile, looked less and less like the months of drought that dried up reservoirs and caused hungry bears to roam into neighborhoods in search of food.
    — Mead Gruver, Chicago Tribune, 1 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Actually good, but couldn't get a word in because Girardi and Rizzo, two former YANKEES, wouldn't shut up.
    — Zach Dean OutKick, FOXNews.com, 30 Sep. 2026
  • These days we are surrounded by ghosts and gossamer visions vying for our attention, trying to tell us something vital—or as mundane as to shut up already, like in my case.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Sep. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Clammed up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clammed%20up. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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