1
: an involuntary and abnormal muscular contraction
2
: a sudden violent and temporary effort, emotion, or sensation
a spasm of creativity
spasms of pain
spasm
intransitive verb
Examples of spasm in a Sentence
a disease that causes muscle spasms
He was racked with coughing spasms.
She was suffering spasms of guilt.
Recent Examples on the Web
Trump said, when asked about a recent spasm of anti-police violence in Boston’s South End.
—
Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 5 Dec. 2025
That spasm reduced blood flow enough to cause an ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), better known as a heart attack - not because of a blockage, but because my heart wasn’t getting enough oxygen during the spasm.
—Sydney Bucksbaum, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Dec. 2025
Smart was ruled out against the Suns on Monday afternoon because of lower back injury management – a change in injury designation after being listed as out for last Friday’s victory over the Dallas Mavericks and Sunday night’s win against the New Orleans Pelicans because of back spasms.
—Khobi Price, Oc Register, 2 Dec. 2025
Along with LeBron James, the Lakers have also listed Marcus Smart as doubtful due to back spasms, and Bronny James is out, as he’s been assigned to the NBA G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers.
—Justin Grasso, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for spasm
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.
Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 5 Dec. 2025
That spasm reduced blood flow enough to cause an ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), better known as a heart attack - not because of a blockage, but because my heart wasn’t getting enough oxygen during the spasm.
—Sydney Bucksbaum, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Dec. 2025
Smart was ruled out against the Suns on Monday afternoon because of lower back injury management – a change in injury designation after being listed as out for last Friday’s victory over the Dallas Mavericks and Sunday night’s win against the New Orleans Pelicans because of back spasms.
—Khobi Price, Oc Register, 2 Dec. 2025
Along with LeBron James, the Lakers have also listed Marcus Smart as doubtful due to back spasms, and Bronny James is out, as he’s been assigned to the NBA G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers.
—Justin Grasso, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for spasm
Cite this Entry
“Spasm.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spasm. Accessed 11 Dec. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
spasm
noun1
: a sudden uncontrolled contracting of muscles
back spasms
2
: a sudden violent and temporary effort, emotion, or outburst
a spasm of creativity
spasm
verb
Medical Definition
spasm
noun1
: an involuntary and abnormal contraction of muscle or muscle fibers or of a hollow organ (as an artery, the colon, or the esophagus) that consists largely of involuntary muscle fibers
2
: the state or condition of a muscle or organ affected with spasms
the renal artery went into spasm
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share