cam

1 of 3

noun (1)

ˈkam 

1

: a rotating or sliding piece (such as an eccentric wheel or a cylinder with an irregular shape) in a mechanical linkage used especially in transforming rotary motion into linear motion or vice versa

2

: camshaft

an engine with a single overhead cam

cam

2 of 3

noun (2)

: camera

especially : video camera

CAM

3 of 3

abbreviation

1

computer-aided manufacturing

2

complementary and alternative medicine

Examples of cam in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Police body cam video shows officers arriving in the darkness to find two-thirds of the 12-story condominium complex in a heap of rubble, with people in the remaining units stranded, screaming for help from their balconies. — Marisa Peñaloza, NPR, 24 June 2026

Body cam footage released by the Summit County Sheriff's Office shows a camper contacted by deputies about their fire. — Spencer Wilson, CBS News, 23 June 2026

Shown from above from the Washington Monument live cam, there were a few pockets of water that still had a slight green tint Monday afternoon, including a portion near the World War II Memorial. — Mike Stunson, USA Today, 22 June 2026

Leinweber said that in some cases, police have had to rely on subpar freestanding trail cams or GoPros to capture areas during surveillance or public safety projects. — Chuck Fieldman, Chicago Tribune, 22 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

perhaps from French came, from German Kamm, literally, comb, from Old High German kamb

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1777, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1969, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing cam

• body cam
• cam girl
• cam wheel
• dash cam

Rhymes for cam

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

Kids Definition

cam

1 of 2 noun

ˈkam 

: a device by which circular motion may be transformed into stop-and-start or back-and-forth motion

cam

2 of 2 noun

: camera sense 2

Etymology

Noun

perhaps from French came "cam," from German Kamm, literally, "comb"

Medical Definition

CAM

abbreviation

1

cell adhesion molecule

2

complementary and alternative medicine

According to a 2002 survey by the National Center for Health Statistics, 36 percent of adults in the United States used some form of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), including naturopathy, relaxation techniques, chiropractic, yoga, massage, and diets.

—In-Sung Yoo, The News Journal (Wilmington, Delaware)

Geographical Definition

Cam

geographical name

ˈkam 

river 40 miles (64 kilometers) long in Cambridgeshire, east central England, flowing into the Ouse River