| 释义 |
Spam|spæm|
Also spam.
[App. blend of spiced ppl. a. + ham n.1, but see also quot. 19371.]
1. The proprietary name of a type of tinned meat consisting chiefly of pork; also (with lower-case initial) applied loosely to other types of tinned luncheon meat.
1937Squeal 1 July 1/2 In the last month Geo. A. Hormel & Co...launched the product Spam... The ‘think-up’ of the name [is] credited to Kenneth Daigneau, New York actor... Seems as if he had considered the word a good memorable trade-name for some time, had only waited for a product to attach it to. 1937Official Gaz. (U.S. Patent Office) 26 Oct. 750/2 Geo. A. Hormel & Company, Austin, Minn... Spam..For Canned Meats—Namely, Spiced Ham. Claims use since May 11, 1937. 1939J. Steinbeck Grapes of Wrath v. 49 The tractor driver stopped..and opened his lunch: sandwiches wrapped in waxed paper, white bread, pickle, cheese, Spam. 1942Yank 28 Oct. 8 There, arrayed in all their glory, were slices of ham, spam, bologna and potato salad. 1951‘A. Garve’ Murder in Moscow xiii. 127, I received..four tins of meat—spam, I think it was called. 1957H. Roosenburg Walls came tumbling Down ix. 199 We were offered Spam sandwiches. 1971C. Bonington Annapurna South Face xi. 134 That night he made supper, a magnificent concoction of fried Spam and fried new potatoes. 1981G. MacBeth Kind of Treason iv. 41 A plate of Molly's best Spam sandwiches.
fig.1958Listener 6 Nov. 750/2 An actor can only turn the quite unconscious richness of it [sc. the Hoxton voice] into—spam.
2. Comb. Spam can slang, a streamlined steam locomotive formerly used on the Southern Region of British Rail; Spam medal Mil. slang, a medal awarded to all the members of a force (see also quot. 1962).
1967G. F. Fiennes I tried to run Railway v. 54 We borrowed from the Southern for trials two Battle of Britain class engines..We took these Spam Cans out. 1971D. J. Smith Discovery Railwayana x. 59 Spam can, streamlined locomotive of the SR.
1945Partridge Dict. R.A.F. Slang 40 Naffy gong 1939–45 star (medal). Since late 1943... It is also called the spam medal. 1959Legionary Mar. 11/1 As all of us overseas at the time were volunteers, it meant that everybody wore one and so, in patronizing fashion, we tagged it [sc. the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal] the Spam Medal. 1962Granville Dict. Sailors' Slang 110 Spam medal, 1939–45 star whose ribbon has the same colours as the NAAFI girls' arm flash. As spam, a kind of spiced-ham, was sold in the NAAFI canteen, what more obvious term could suggest itself?
Hence ˈspammy a., consisting or tasting chiefly of (bland) luncheon meat; also fig., commonplace, mediocre, unexciting.
1959Observer 11 Jan. 18/3 Skipton is toned down to scale with our spammy age. 1960J. Stroud Shorn Lamb i. 13 We got a spammy sort of meal.
▸ Computing slang. Usu. in form spam. Compare spam v. 2. Originally: irrelevant or inappropriate postings to an Internet newsgroup, esp. messages sent to a large number of newsgroups simultaneously, often for advertising purposes; an act or instance of sending such messages. Now chiefly: similar unsolicited electronic mail, esp. when sent to individuals as part of a mass-mailing.
[1993Los Angeles Times (Nexis) 30 Sept. J 6/1 Spam, information that might not be legitimate or real, as in ‘This rumor may have a high Spam content.’] 1994Network World (Nexis) 30 May 2 Internet users suffered another ‘spam attack’ last week, this time from a Florida public-access host user who flooded Usenet conferences with ads for a thigh-reducing cream. 1995New Scientist 23 Sept. 26/2 Almost all of the spams are simply deleted by the users, but enough people respond for spammers to continue the practice. 2000Times 7 Aug. (Interface section) 4/4 Don't worry. It sounds like some stupid spam to me. |