sam

English Online Dictionary. What means sam‎? What does sam mean?

Translingual

Symbol

sam

1. (international standards) ISO 639-2 & ISO 639-3 language code for Samaritan Aramaic.

See also

• Wiktionary’s coverage of Samaritan Aramaic terms

English

Etymology 1

From Middle English sammen, samnen, from Old English samnian, ġesamnian (“to collect, assemble, bring together, gather, join, unite, compose, meet, glean”), from Proto-West Germanic *samnōn, from Proto-Germanic *samnōną (“to gather”), from Proto-Indo-European *sem- (“one”). Cognate with Dutch zamelen (“to collect”), German sammeln (“to collect, gather”), Swedish samla (“to gather, collect”), Icelandic samna (“to gather, collect”). More at same.

Alternative forms

• samen

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sæm/
• Rhymes: -æm
• Homophone: Sam (Received Pronunciation, US)

Verb

sam (third-person singular simple present sams, present participle samming, simple past and past participle sammed)

1. (transitive, UK dialectal) To assemble.
2. (transitive, UK dialectal, of persons) To bring together; join (in marriage, friendship, love, etc.).
3. (transitive, UK dialectal, of things) To bring together; collect; put in order; arrange.
4. (intransitive, UK dialectal) To assemble; come together.
5. (transitive, UK dialectal) To coagulate; curdle (milk).

Usage notes

• Often used with together or up

Derived terms

• stand sam
• upon my sam

Etymology 2

From Middle English sām (“together”), from Old English samen (“together”), from Proto-West Germanic *saman, from Proto-Germanic *samanai (“together”), from Proto-Indo-European *sem- (“together, one”).

Adverb

sam (not comparable)

1. (obsolete) Together

Etymology 3

From Middle English sam- (prefix), from Old English sam-, from Proto-Germanic *sēmi- (“half”), from Proto-Indo-European *sēmi- (“half”). Related to semi- (via Latin).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sæm/
• Rhymes: -æm
• Homophone: Sam (Received Pronunciation, US)

Adjective

sam (not comparable)

1. (dialectal) Half or imperfectly done.
2. (of food) Half-heated.

Related terms

• sammy
• sandblind

Etymology 4

Possibly from Uncle Sam.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sæm/
• Rhymes: -æm
• Homophone: Sam (Received Pronunciation, US)

Noun

sam (plural sams)

1. (slang) Federal narcotics agent.

Anagrams

• 'ams, Mas, mas, MSA, -mas, ASM, AMS, M.A.S., MAs, sma, M.A.s, SMA, M. A. S., MAS, A.M.s, asm

Atong (India)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sʰam/

Etymology 1

From Proto-Bodo-Garo *sam¹ (“grass”). Related to Garo samsi, Garo sam.

Noun

sam (Bengali script সাম)

1. grass; weed
2. medicine

Derived terms

Etymology 2

Verb

sam- (Bengali script সাম)

1. to wait

Etymology 3

Classifier

sam- (Bengali script সাম)

1. used with any bilateral body part, hands, eyes, etc. and also tires

References

• van Breugel, Seino. 2015. Atong-English dictionary, second edition. Available online: https://www.academia.edu/487044/Atong_English_Dictionary.

Charrua

Numeral

sam

1. two

References

• El último charrúa: de Salsipuedes a la actualidad (1996)
• Idioma español y habla criolla: Charrúas y vilelas (1968)
• Čestmír Loukotka, ‎Johannes Wilbert (editor), Classification of South American Indian Languages (1968, Los Angeles: Latin American Studies Center, University of California), page(s) 62

Chuukese

Noun

sam

1. father

Garo

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sam/

Etymology 1

From Proto-Bodo-Garo *sam¹ (“grass”). Related to Atong (India) sam.

Noun

sam

1. grass; herb
2. medicine
3. curry

Etymology 2

Classifier

sam

1. used with any bilateral body part, hands, eyes, etc.

Further reading

• Burling, R. (2003) The Language of the Modhupur Mandi (Garo) Vol. II: The Lexicon‎^[2], Bangladesh: University of Michigan, page 275

Hokkien

Lhao Vo

Etymology

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *g-sum (“three”). Cognate with Burmese သုံး (sum:, “three”).

Numeral

sam

1. three

References

• Dr. Ola Hanson, A Dictionary of the Kachin Language (1906).

Macanese

Verb

sam

1. Alternative form of sâm

Maltese

Etymology

From Arabic صامَ (ṣāma).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /saːm/

Verb

sam (imperfect jsum, active participle sajjem, verbal noun sawm)

1. to fast

Conjugation

Mizo

Etymology 1

From Proto-Kuki-Chin *sham, from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *(t)sam.

Noun

sam

1. hair (of the head)
2. antenna (of insects)

Etymology 2

Adjective

sam

1. easy, simple

Nga La

Etymology

From Proto-Kuki-Chin *sham, from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *(t)sam.

Noun

sam

1. hair (of the head)

References

• Matu (Chin) Dictionary by Ropna Saruum, Matupi 2007

Old Irish

Etymology

From Proto-Celtic *samos (“summer”) (compare Welsh haf), from Proto-Indo-European *sm̥-h₂-ó- (compare Old English sumor, Old Armenian ամառն (amaṙn)).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [saβ̃]

Noun

sam m (genitive unattested, no plural)

1. summer

Inflection

Synonyms

• samrad

Mutation

Further reading

• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “1 sam”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language

Old Norse

Verb

sam

1. second-person singular imperative of sama

Old Polish

Etymology 1

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *samъ. First attested in the 14th century.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (10^th–15^th CE) /saːm/
• IPA^(key): (15^th CE) /sɒm/

Pronoun

sam

1. alone, by oneself, without company
2. myself, yourself, himself, etc. (emphatic determiner, used similarly to "no other than" or "the very", as in "I myself")
3. The meaning of this term is uncertain.

Descendants

• Polish: sam
• Silesian: sōm

Etymology 2

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *sěmo. First attested in the 14th century.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (10^th–15^th CE) /sam/
• IPA^(key): (15^th CE) /sam/

Adverb

sam

1. here; hither

Descendants

• Polish: siam
• Silesian: sam

References

• B. Sieradzka-Baziur, Ewa Deptuchowa, Joanna Duska, Mariusz Frodyma, Beata Hejmo, Dorota Janeczko, Katarzyna Jasińska, Krystyna Kajtoch, Joanna Kozioł, Marian Kucała, Dorota Mika, Gabriela Niemiec, Urszula Poprawska, Elżbieta Supranowicz, Ludwika Szelachowska-Winiarzowa, Zofia Wanicowa, Piotr Szpor, Bartłomiej Borek, editors (2011–2015), “1. sam”, in Słownik pojęciowy języka staropolskiego [Conceptual Dictionary of Old Polish] (in Polish), Kraków: IJP PAN, →ISBN
• B. Sieradzka-Baziur, Ewa Deptuchowa, Joanna Duska, Mariusz Frodyma, Beata Hejmo, Dorota Janeczko, Katarzyna Jasińska, Krystyna Kajtoch, Joanna Kozioł, Marian Kucała, Dorota Mika, Gabriela Niemiec, Urszula Poprawska, Elżbieta Supranowicz, Ludwika Szelachowska-Winiarzowa, Zofia Wanicowa, Piotr Szpor, Bartłomiej Borek, editors (2011–2015), “2. sam”, in Słownik pojęciowy języka staropolskiego [Conceptual Dictionary of Old Polish] (in Polish), Kraków: IJP PAN, →ISBN

Phalura

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sam/

Adverb

sam (Perso-Arabic spelling سم)

1. equally

References

• Henrik Liljegren, Naseem Haider (2011) “sam”, in Palula Vocabulary (FLI Language and Culture Series; 7)‎^[3], Islamabad, Pakistan: Forum for Language Initiatives, →ISBN

Polish

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -am
• Syllabification: sam

Etymology 1

Inherited from Old Polish sam.

Adjective

sam (not generally comparable, comparative bardziej sam, superlative najbardziej sam, no derived adverb)

1. alone (oneself without company)
2. alone (oneself without help)

Adverb

sam (not generally comparable, comparative bardziej sam, superlative najbardziej sam)

1. alone, by oneself, without company

   Synonyms: osobno, samodzielnie

2. (Middle Polish or dialectal, Central Greater Poland, Kuyavia) here (at this place)

   Synonyms: tu, tutaj

   Alternative forms: (dialectal) sa, (dialectal) samoj

Particle

sam

1. emphatic determiner, used similarly to "no other than" or "the very", as in "I myself"; oneself

2. by oneself, alone (by one's own volition or power, without outside help or encouragement)

Declension

Derived terms

Related terms

Etymology 2

Clipping of sklep samoobsługowy.

Alternative forms

• SAM

Noun

sam m inan

1. (colloquial) self-service shop

   Synonym: sklep samoobsługowy

Declension

Trivia

According to Słownik frekwencyjny polszczyzny współczesnej (1990), sam is one of the most used words in Polish, appearing 159 times in scientific texts, 70 times in news, 120 times in essays, 231 times in fiction, and 302 times in plays, each out of a corpus of 100,000 words, totaling 882 times, making it the 48th most common word in a corpus of 500,000 words.

References

Further reading

• sam in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• sam in Polish dictionaries at PWN
• “SAM_I”, in Elektroniczny Słownik Języka Polskiego XVII i XVIII Wieku [Electronic Dictionary of the Polish Language of the XVII and XVIII Century], 2023 February 22
• “SAM_II”, in Elektroniczny Słownik Języka Polskiego XVII i XVIII Wieku [Electronic Dictionary of the Polish Language of the XVII and XVIII Century], 2023 February 22
• Samuel Bogumił Linde (1807–1814) “sam”, in Słownik języka polskiego
• Aleksander Zdanowicz (1861) “sam”, in Słownik języka polskiego, Wilno 1861
• J. Karłowicz, A. Kryński, W. Niedźwiedzki, editors (1900), “sam”, in Słownik języka polskiego (in Polish), volume 1, Warsaw, page 11
• sam in Narodowy Fotokorpus Języka Polskiego
• Stanisław Ciszewski (1916) “sam”, in “Przyczynek do słownika gwary wielkopolskiej”, in Prace Filologiczne (in Polish), volume 8, z. 1, Warsaw: skł. gł. w Księgarni E. Wende i Ska, page 98
• Władysław Matlakowski (1892) “sam”, in Słownik wyrazów ludowych zebranych w Czerskiem i na Kujawach (in Polish), Kraków: nakł. Akademii Umiejętności; Drukarnia Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego pod zarządem A. M. Kosterkiewicza, page 16

Rohingya

Alternative forms

• 𐴏𐴝𐴔 (sam) — Hanifi spelling

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

sam (Hanifi spelling 𐴏𐴝𐴔)

1. skin

   Synonym: samra

Romani

Verb

sam

1. first-person plural present indicative of si

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology 1

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *samъ, from Proto-Indo-European *somHós.

Adjective

sȃm (Cyrillic spelling са̑м, definite sȃmī)

1. alone, sole
2. unaided, single-handed
3. absolute, very, mere, unmixed
4. solitary, secluded

Declension

Alternative forms

• sȃm

Etymology 2

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *(j)esmь, from Proto-Balto-Slavic *esmi, from Proto-Indo-European *h₁ésmi.

Verb

sȁm (Cyrillic spelling са̏м)

1. first-person singular present tense enclitic form of biti.

   Tu sam. — I'm here.

Silesian

Etymology

Inherited from Old Polish sam.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsam/
• Rhymes: -am
• Syllabification: sam

Pronoun

sam

1. here

   Synonym: tukej

2. hither

Further reading

• sam in silling.org

Slovene

Etymology

From Proto-Slavic *samъ, from Proto-Indo-European *somHós.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sáːm/

Adjective

sȃm (not comparable)

1. alone, sole
2. unaided, single-handed, by oneself

Declension

Derived terms

• sámost
• samoglásnik
• samomòr
• samostálnik
• samoróg
• samostán

Further reading

• “sam”, in Slovarji Inštituta za slovenski jezik Frana Ramovša ZRC SAZU, portal Fran
• “sam”, in Termania, Amebis
• See also the general references

Swedish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sam/

Verb

sam

1. past indicative of simma

Anagrams

• mas

Vietnamese

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [saːm˧˧]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [ʂaːm˧˧] ~ [saːm˧˧]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [ʂaːm˧˧] ~ [saːm˧˧]

Etymology 1

Highly unlikely due to irregular sound change. Possibly from Proto-Mon-Khmer *kt₁aam (“crab”) (Norman & Mei, 1976; mistakenly glossed as "king crab"). However, Shorto (2006) includes no such derivation. Compare Vietnamese đam (“field crab”) and Lingao sam¹ (“horseshoe crab”).

Noun

(classifier con) sam • (杉, 衫, 𧏰, 𧓰, 𪓫)

1. a horseshoe crab

   đuôi sam ― a horseshoe crab's tail; a braid/plait

See also

• so

Etymology 2

Noun

(classifier cây) sam • (蔘)

1. common purslane (Portulaca oleracea)

   Synonym: rau sam

Ye'kwana

Alternative forms

• samm

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [sam]

Ideophone

sam

1. zooming
2. (of food) stinging, biting

References

• Cáceres, Natalia (2011) “samm”, in Grammaire Fonctionnelle-Typologique du Ye’kwana‎^[4], Lyon, page 166

Zhuang

Etymology

From Proto-Tai *saːm (“three”), from Middle Chinese 三 (MC sam, “three”). Cognate with Thai สาม (sǎam), Northern Thai ᩈᩣ᩠ᨾ, Lao ສາມ (sām), Lü ᦉᦱᧄ (ṡaam), Tai Dam ꪎꪱꪣ, Shan သၢမ် (sǎam), Tai Nüa ᥔᥣᥛᥴ (sáam), Ahom 𑜏𑜪 (saṃ), Bouyei saaml.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Zhuang) IPA^(key): /θaːm˨˦/
• Tone numbers: sam¹
• Hyphenation: sam

Numeral

sam (1957–1982 spelling sam)

1. three