What does "scram" mean?
A gun, firearm.
Scram
/skɹæm/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A gun, firearm.
- Grammar: scram is listed as noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: buzz off, 23 skidoo, away, be off.
- Useful contrasts: come back, linger, remain.
- Usage evidence: "Get it through your thick skull. You are not one of us, and you will never be one of us. Is that clear?" "Crystal clear." "Good. Now scram. I don't want to see your ugly mug around here again."
How to use "scram"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "scram" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "scram" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "scram" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "scram" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "scram" is acting as noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "buzz off" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "scram", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A gun, firearm. Multicultural-London-English, slang
"Bad be say she don’t usually do this In the trap with a stick, I do this Get ’round there with a scram I don’t give a damn"
- 2 A shutdown of a nuclear reactor (or, by extension, some other thing), often done rapidly due to an emergency. also, attributive
"During scram operation, a scram signal de-energizes the inlet and outlet scram valves. The outlet scram valve vents the volume above the drive piston to a scram dump tank. The inlet scram valve supplies scram pressure obtained from an accumulator to the under side of the vented piston."
- 3 A scratch, especially caused by claws or fingernails. Derbyshire, Wales
"scram [...] Noun. [...] 2. A scratch. [South Wales use]"
- 4 Alternative letter-case form of scram. alt-of, countable, uncountable
"She watched as the Marine technical team leader pressed the red SCRAM buttons for each reactor, setting off a chorus of alarms."
- 5 The device used to shut down a nuclear reactor; also, the button or switch used to initiate a shutdown.
"Each room housing a radiation source has a red-buttoned "scram" switch on the wall. One touch of the switch and all equipment stops abruptly."
Show 1 more definition
- 6 A mine previously worked on where most of the ore is believed to have been removed, but which is still being mined on a small scale. US, archaic
"[page 64] Many of these old openings still afford places where ore is mined. A man can start in almost anywhere and fine ore. There is a great deal of this "scramming" done at the Jackson. Quite a proportion of the annual product comes in this way. Not unfrequently one of these "scrams" leads to the finding of a large deposit of ore. [...] [page 67] South from the east part of the Incline pit they have a scram of good ore which furnished a small product."
Verb
- 1 To leave in a hurry; to go away. imperative, intransitive, often
"What are you kids doing on my lawn? Scram!"
- 2 To shut down (a nuclear reactor or, by extension, some other thing) for safety reasons, usually because of an emergency. transitive
"The NCR [Nuclear Regulatory Commission] further demands the plant conform to all the safety requirements put into effect during construction. This means constant re-design. There must also be several ways to scram (emergency shut down) the reactor. Some of these are automatic and some are manual."
- 3 To scratch (something) with claws or fingernails; to claw. Derbyshire, Wales, transitive
"scram [...] Verb. [...] 2. To scratch, with claws or fingernails. E.g. "It's my own fault the cat scrammed me, I was teasing it." [South Wales use]"
- 4 Of one's body or limbs: to become numb or stiff due to cold, lack of movement, etc. British, archaic, dialectal, intransitive
"The bean-setters can fully appreciate the nipping, biting keenness of the air, and avow frankly, in their own peculiar idiom, "that they be pretty nigh scrammed!""
- 5 Alternative letter-case form of scram. alt-of
"Raising group eight rods and brining a nuclear reactor fully to life for the first time in nearly ten years—everyone was so ready they were all ready to pee in their pants. Andrews did not know he could do it without SCRAMing the reactor—in other words, pushing it into an automatic shutdown that might be too little too late."
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 leave immediately; used usually in the imperative form wordnet
- 7 Of a nuclear reactor or some other thing: to shut down, usually because of an emergency. intransitive
"This shut off current to the control rod mechanism, and the reactor scrammed (shut off) automatically."
- 8 To mine for ore on a small scale, especially from mines previously been worked on where most of the ore is believed to have been removed. US, archaic, transitive
"Just west of this pit is another one, which has been nearly worked out; but three men are scramming about five tons per day in it."
- 9 To be weakened by an accident, a disease, starvation, etc. British, archaic, dialectal, intransitive
""But they will be scrammed!^* the children will be scrammed, Mary, before morning," cried Jim, scratching his head with perplexity and distress at the very thought of two young creatures sleeping on the bare boards, in a cold garret with only a shawl to cover them. [Footnote *: Starved.]"
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
""Get it through your thick skull. You are not one of us, and you will never be one of us. Is that clear?" "Crystal clear." "Good. Now scram. I don't want to see your ugly mug around here again.""
Common questions
What is a synonym for "scram"?
Common synonyms include: buzz off, 23 skidoo, away, be off, beat it, beat it.
How do you use "scram" in a sentence?
"Get it through your thick skull. You are not one of us, and you will never be one of us. Is that clear?" "Crystal clear." "Good. Now scram. I don't want to see your ugly mug around here again."
How do you pronounce "scram"?
Pronounced /skɹæm/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Probably either: * a clipping of scramble by apocope; or * from dialectal German schramm, the imperative singular form of schrammen (“to scratch, scrape”), from Late Middle High German schramm, schramme (“a graze, scratch”); further etymology unknown.
Etymology 2
Uncertain; the verb is possibly derived from etymology 1. It has been suggested that the word is an acronym for phrases like “safety control rod actuator mechanism”, “safety cut rope axe man”, “safety control rod axe man”, and “safety control rods activation mechanism”, but these are most likely backronyms. The noun is probably derived from the verb.
Etymology 3
The verb is a variant of dialectal English scramb (“to pull or rake together with the hands; to gather a handful of something from the ground; to scratch with the claws or nails; to pull down violently; to tear off; to maul about; a handful of something from the ground”), possibly related to Dutch schrammen (“to graze, scratch”) and German schrammen (“to scratch, scrape”); see etymology 1. The noun is derived from the verb.
Etymology 4
Origin unknown.
Etymology 5
See scram; the use of uppercase letters may be because the word is thought to be an acronym of phrases like “safety control rod actuator mechanism”, “safety control rod axe man”, and “safety control rods activation mechanism”, but these are most likely backronyms.