jamb

noun

1
: an upright piece or surface forming the side of an opening (as for a door, window, or fireplace)
2
: a projecting columnar part or mass

Examples of jamb in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web If that didn't work, Arthur could grab a door jamb with one hand and the spinning block of bodies with the other hand, bringing the spinning to a sudden stop. Eric Wolff, Discover Magazine, 9 Aug. 2010 Inside, the Platinum Black—naturally—has black Nirvana leather upholstery plus a plate in the door jamb denoting the special-edition series number. Joey Capparella, Car and Driver, 24 Aug. 2023 The jamb is the weakest spot on your door, so adding an extra sturdy strike plate and extra-long screws provides reinforcement in the event someone tries to break in by kicking in your door. Nina Derwin, Woman's Day, 12 May 2023 That prior car also showed nearly 30,000 fewer miles on its odometer and didn’t appear to suffer from any notable rust, unlike this 325i, which reportedly has rust in its left door jamb. Greg S. Fink, Car and Driver, 13 Apr. 2023 Dragged out the hose to clean my wheels and clean the door jambs on the truck....at least half the spray went in my face. Ian Livingston, Washington Post, 4 Mar. 2023 Arredondo, who has been identified by other officials as the incident commander on scene, had previously told the Texas Tribune that officers had found the classroom doors were locked and reinforced with a steel jamb, hindering any potential response or rescue. Travis Caldwell and Rosa Flores, CNN, 21 June 2022 An 18-year-old gunman killed 19 children and two teachers behind a locked classroom door the chief said was reinforced with a steel jamb and couldn't be kicked in. CBS News, 10 June 2022 Because the classroom door was reinforced with a steel jamb, officers were unable to kick the door in, Arredondo told the Tribune. Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN, 10 June 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'jamb.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English jambe, borrowed from Anglo-French jambe, gaunbe "side post of a door or window," literally, "leg," going back to Late Latin gamba, camba "hock or upper leg of a horse," borrowed from Greek kampḗ "bend, flexion of a limb," probably going back to a European substratal base *kamp-, whence also perhaps Lithuanian kam̃pas "corner, hidden place," Latvian kampis "curved piece of wood, kettle hook," Gothic hamfs "maimed"

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of jamb was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near jamb

Cite this Entry

“Jamb.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jamb. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

jamb

noun
: an upright piece forming the side of an opening (as of a door)

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