slam dunkn.adj.
/ˌslam ˈdʌŋk/, U.S. /ˌslæm ˈdəŋk/ A. n.
1. Basketball. A shot made by jumping up and pushing the ball downward into the basket with the hand or hands above the rim. Cf. dunk n. 2.Frequently as a modifier, as in slam-dunk champion, slam-dunk contest, etc.; cf. dunk n. Compounds.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > basketball > [noun] > goal > types of goal
bank shot1859
field goal1896
dunk shot1940
tap-in1948
dunk1957
tip-in1958
slam dunk1969
put-back1980
1969 Bakersfield Californian 8 Jan. 21/4 Trapp got the invaders rolling after the tip by almost tearing the basket off with a slam dunk.
1984 Jet 23 Jan. 37/1 Julius Erving of the Philadelphia 76ers, basketball's reigning slam-dunk champion.
1991 Sports Illustr. 8 Apr. 26/1 Duke spent the first five minutes of its Friday practice..staging a slam-dunk contest.
2016 Daily Tel. (Austral.) (Nexis) 15 July 99 Ingles..ignited the crowd with a one-handed slam dunk in the first basket of the match.
2. North American colloquial. Something expected to prove totally successful; a secure prospect; an easy victory.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > belief > uncertainty, doubt, hesitation > absence of doubt, confidence > assured fact, certainty > certain prospect or possession > [noun] > something easily done or acquired
sure card?1562
sure thing1836
open-and-shut1841
cinch1888
cert1889
snipa1890
pinch1897
lead-pipe1898
sitter1898
stone ginger1936
slam dunk1984
1984 N.Y. Times 31 May d22/4 If Waxman, Levine and Berman had not endorsed Hart it would be a slam dunk.
1990 B. Burrough & J. Helyar Barbarians at Gate vi. 159 He was convinced the deal would be..‘a slam dunk’, in Wall Street parlance.
2017 Vernon (Brit. Columbia) Morning Star (Nexis) 24 Sept. Everyone in Toronto believes the case is a slam dunk, especially since Brace confessed to a newspaper deliveryman that he killed her.
B. adj.
North American colloquial. Certain to succeed or achieve the desired outcome; guaranteed.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > prosperity > success > [adjective] > certain to succeed
unfailingc1400
unfailablea1525
indefectible1659
infallible1711
indefeatablea1754
surefire1838
undisappointable1871
sure-shot1895
slam dunk1980
1980 Internat. Examiner (Seattle, Washington) Mar. 10/1 Ted Choi calls establishment of a Chinese community center ‘the slam dunk solution’ to many of the problems of the Chinese community.
1990 Harper's Mag. Aug. 5/1 A sex-abuse allegation is a surefire, slam-dunk way to cinch a custody battle.
1992 T. J. Rodgers et al. No-excuses Managem. (1993) i. 39 A slam-dunk candidate—the education is right, the résumé is right, the personality is right—walks through the door.
2005 Globe & Mail (Toronto) (Nexis) 29 Apr. a1 If we can't deport him, let's prosecute him. I think it should be a slam-dunk case.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2021).
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n.adj.1969