spam

1 of 3

noun

ˈspam 

: unsolicited usually commercial messages (such as emails, text messages, or Internet postings) sent to a large number of recipients or posted in a large number of places

spam

2 of 3

verb

spammed; spamming

transitive verb

: to send or post spam to

spammed customers with discount offers

spamming a message board

intransitive verb

: to send or post spam

The company was accused of spamming via text messages.

spammer noun

Spam

3 of 3

trademark

—used for a canned meat product

Examples of spam in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

If an alias starts receiving spam or scam messages, it can be disabled without affecting the main email account. —Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 11 Jan. 2026

The Magic played without Tristan da Silva (back spams) and Jalen Suggs, who missed a fourth straight game with a right knee contusion. —CBS News, 10 Jan. 2026

Verb

The chat function on streaming platforms, which allows viewers to submit questions or to spam slurs or cryptocurrency advice, creates an easy Q. & A. feature: a streamer can sit back and answer questions for hours without having to plan. —Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 18 Nov. 2025

There are elementary agents, like customer service assistants that can independently field, triage, and handle inbound calls, or sales bots that can cycle through email lists and spam the good leads. —Evan Ratliff, Wired News, 12 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

from a skit on the British television series Monty Python's Flying Circus in which chanting of the word Spam overrides the other dialogue

First Known Use

Noun

1990, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1994, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Phrases Containing spam

• anti-spam
• spam filter

Rhymes for spam

• am
• bam
• cham
• clam
• damme
• damn
• dram
• flam
• fram
• gram
• ham
• jam

Kids Definition

spam

1 of 2 noun

ˈspam 

: unsolicited usually commercial email sent to a large number of addresses

spam

2 of 2 verb

: to send spam to

spammer noun