clambake

American  

[klam-beyk] / ˈklæmˌbeɪk /

noun

1. a picnic or social gathering at the seashore at which clams and other seafood are baked, sometimes with corn and other items, traditionally on hot stones under a covering of seaweed.

2. Informal. any social gathering, especially a very noisy one.

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clambake British  

/ ˈklæmˌbeɪk /

noun

1. a picnic, often by the sea, at which clams, etc, are baked

2. an informal party

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Etymology

Origin of clambake

An Americanism dating back to 1825–35; clam ¹ + bake

Example Sentences

Hundreds of years before Europeans arrived on New England shores, Native Americans created the clambake by digging pits in the sand to steam them with lobster.

From Washington Times • Aug. 14, 2023

One group will play in the PGA Tour’s Pebble Beach Pro-Am, a tournament that started as a clambake hosted by the crooner Bing Crosby.

From Washington Post • Jan. 6, 2022

Headlining a Rockingham County Democrats annual clambake, she zeroed in on the state’s soaring student loan debt.

From Fox News • May 22, 2019

And even with the clambake, you bring these great flourishes.

From Salon • Mar. 9, 2019

"They are well in time for the clambake," I remarked, "although they have digged no clams."

From The Clammer and the Submarine by Hopkins, William John

Related Words

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