What does lamming mean?
Lamming means fleeing or making a rapid escape, particularly when someone is trying to avoid arrest, prosecution, or another legal consequence. Its best-known context is British informal and colloquial speech, where it often evokes a suspect or fugitive going on the run. The word may also be used more generally for leaving abruptly to avoid an unpleasant obligation or confrontation, although that sense is less common. Lamming is derived from the British slang verb lam, which appears in the familiar expression on the lam. The word should not be confused with lambing, its exact-sounding homophone meaning the birth of lambs, or with lamination, a technical process involving layers. For clear neutral prose, flee, escape, or abscond will usually be more universally understandable.
To flee or escape, especially to avoid arrest or a legal consequence.
"The accused went lamming before the officers reached the house."
Chiefly British and informal; now relatively uncommon outside contexts involving escape from the law.
The act of fleeing or escaping, especially from arrest or another legal consequence.
"Days of lamming eventually brought him back to the city."
Chiefly British and informal; usually associated with a fugitive or someone avoiding the law.
Lamming and lambing sound identical, but one describes a getaway while the other describes the arrival of lambs.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does lamming come from?
Lamming was formed by adding the suffix -ing to lam, an older British slang verb meaning to flee or escape. The precise origin of lam is uncertain, although it was established in British criminal slang by the nineteenth century. It survives most prominently in the expression on the lam; no certain cognates can be identified from the word's uncertain ultimate origin.
Related word forms
How lamming is actually used
This is chiefly a British informal word associated with criminal or legal contexts. The more general sense of escaping a difficult situation is also informal and relatively uncommon in contemporary English.
Easily confused with lamming
Lamming means fleeing or escaping, whereas lambing means giving birth to lambs.
Lam is the British slang verb from which lamming is formed and also appears in the established phrase on the lam.