wham
/wæm/noun, interjection, verb
wham is spelled W-H-A-M: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 37,943rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, wham means “A forceful blow” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of wham is whams.
How many letters and syllables are in wham?
| Letters | 4: W-H-A-M |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 37,943rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| 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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is wham?
Wham appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 37,943rd 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 wham?
- UK /wæm/
- US /wæm/
- US /hwæm/
Wham 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: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-wham.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with wham?
10 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as wham from its last stressed vowel (/æm/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: mwah.
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 wham
- whams plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- whamming participle, present
- whammed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does wham mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A forceful blow.
Roger was given a violent wham by his boxing opponent.
- 2
The sound of such a blow; a thud.
We heard a wham as the hammer struck the wall.
- 3
An attempt.
- 4
A great success.
interjection
- 1
Used to indicate the sound of a forceful blow, an explosion, etc.
Wham! The truck hit the wall.
- 2
Used to indicate something dramatic, sudden, and unanticipated has occurred.
Our relationship was going smoothly and then wham! Out of nowhere he told me he was leaving me for another woman.
verb
- 1
informalTo smash or strike (someone or something) with great force or impact; to slam, to whack.
- 2
informalTo propel (something) with great force by kicking, striking, throwing, etc.
- 3
informalTo smash or strike with great force or impact.
- 4
informalTo move quickly or loudly.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Wham in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense used to indicate the sound of a forceful blow, etc:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | wumm, bum |
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 wham come from?
Onomatopoeic, representing the sound of an object being slammed against something.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).