sham
/ˈʃeə̯m/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.45 in modern English
9
Scrabble Score
4
Letters
1
Syllables
4
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
verb
To obtrude by fraud or imposition.
Example Sentences
- "It was only a sham wedding: they didn't care much for one another, but wanted their parents to stop hassling them."
- "Artiles, a Republican operative with a reputation for a foul mouth and sharp elbows, is accused of financing a sham candidate whose candidacy was intended to siphon votes from a legitimate Democratic candidate in a state Senate race in South Florida’s 37th District. The candidate has the same last name as then-Democratic incumbent Jose Javier Rodriguez but did not actively campaign for the seat and has since admitted being recruited as a spoiler."
- "For this young lady was not able to carry out any emotion to the full; but had a sham enthusiasm, a sham hatred, a sham love, a sham taste, a sham grief, each of which flared and shone very vehemently for an instant, but subsided and gave place to the next sham emotion."
- "For the subject-cities, having secured a moderate form of government, and having no fear of being called to account for their proceedings, aimed at absolute freedom; they scorned the sham independence proffered to them by the Athenians."
- "But the artist[…] is equally famous for his drinking, gambling, his turbulent relationships, his famously chaotic studio, and for the mordant toast frequently attributed to him: “Champagne for my real friends, real pain for my sham friends.”"
- "The time-share deal was a sham."
Etymology
Probably a dialectal form of shame. Alternatively, sham is a term that is used to describe the bottom thick base of a glass, usually a wine or stem glass, where the stem meets the bulbous shape bowl. Glass manufacturers would increase the "sham" to deceive customers into thinking a glass holds more than it actually does. For example, a manufacturer would mold a 12oz glass with a larger "sham" in the base to reduce the volume of the glasses to fit 10-11oz of liquid. By increasing the bulge in the base, usually where the stem meets the glass, it is almost impossible to visually distinguish the difference. This gives the illusion the glass size is the same as any another 12oz glass, but the inside will hold a lesser volume. Later, bringing use to the term "you got shammed" when one party tries to hide something and/or get over on the other party using deceiving tactics.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈʃeə̯m/
Usage
Inflected Forms
more sham (comparative)
most sham (superlative)
shams (plural)
shams (present, singular)
shamming (participle, present)
shammed (participle, past)
shammed (past)