jam
/ˈd͡ʒæm/noun, verb
jam is spelled J-A-M: 3 letters and one syllable. It appears 15 times per million words in written English, the 5,407th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “jam vs jamb” about 260 times a month (Google, United States). As a noun, jam means “A sweet mixture of fruit boiled with sugar and allowed to congeal. Often spread on bread or toast or used in jam tarts” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of jam is jams.
How many letters and syllables are in jam?
| Letters | 3: J-A-M |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 15 times per million words; the 5,407th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search | |
| Sounds like | |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is jam?
Jam appears 15 times per million words in written English, the 5,407th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce jam?
- US /ˈd͡ʒæm/
- [ˈd͡ʒeəm] ~ [ˈd͡ʒɛəm]
- British /ˈd͡ʒam/
Jam has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-jam.ogg, En-uk-jam.ogg, En-gb-Jam_(fruit_spread).ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with jam
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sounds like: jamb (Wiktionary's homophone list; some hold only in some accents).
Also written: jamb.
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with jam?
10 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as jam from its last stressed vowel (/æm/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: maj.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of jam
- jams plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- jamming participle, present
- jammed participle, past
- jama
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does jam mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A sweet mixture of fruit boiled with sugar and allowed to congeal. Often spread on bread or toast or used in jam tarts
He is allergic to jam.
- 2
A difficult situation.
- 3
A difficult situation for a pitcher or defending team.
The pitcher's in a jam now, having walked the bases loaded with the cleanup hitter coming to bat.
- 4
A blockage, congestion, or immobilization.
a jam on the 101 South, blocking the two right lanes [radio report]
- 5
An informal, impromptu performance or rehearsal.
- 6
informalA song; a track.
pump up the jam
- 7
An informal event where people brainstorm and collaborate on projects.
We came up with some new ideas at the game jam.
- 8
slangThat which one particularly prefers, desires, enjoys, or cares about.
Teaching is my jam.
- 9
datedA kind of frock for children.
- 10
Alternative form of jamb.
verb
- 1
To get something stuck, often (though not necessarily) in a confined space.
My foot got jammed in a gap between the rocks.
- 2
To brusquely force something into a space; to cram, to squeeze.
They temporarily stopped the gas tank leak by jamming a piece of taffy into the hole.
- 3
To render something unable to move.
- 4
To cause congestion or blockage. Often used with "up".
A single accident can jam the roads for hours.
- 5
To block or confuse a radio or radar signal by transmitting a more-powerful signal on the same frequency.
The government jams foreign propaganda broadcasts.
- 6
To turn (fruit) into jam.
- 7
To add jam to; to cover with jam.
- 8
To throw a pitch at or near the batter's hands.
Jones was jammed by the pitch.
noun
- 1
UKinformalA household that is only barely able to meet its financial obligations.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Jam in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | confiture, marmelade , embouteillage , bœuf, jam , pétrin |
| German | Marmelade, Konfitüre , Stau , Patsche, Klemme , einklemmen |
| Portuguese | geleia, compota , congestionamento , jam session , aperto , enfiar |
| Spanish | atasco , atascadero, atolladero , atascar , meter , enturbiar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does jam come from?
First attested in the early 18th c. as a verb meaning “to press, be pressed, be wedged in”. Compare dialectal jammock (“to press, squeeze, crush into a soft mass, chew food"; also "a soft, pulpy substance”). Perhaps from Middle English chammen, champen ("to bite upon something, gnash the teeth"; whence modern champ, chomp), of uncertain origin; probably originally onomatopoeic. The "performance" sense is first attested with regards to jazz in 1929, and its origin, though uncertain, is likely metaphorical, "something sweet made by the combination of many things", with influence from jamboree.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).