spam
/spam
/noun [mass noun]
1Irrelevant or unsolicited messages sent over the Internet, typically to a large number of users, for the purposes of advertising, phishing, spreading malware, etc.E-mail and newsgroup spam are annoying, but at least they file neatly into your e-mail or newsgroup reader....
- There are other irritating blights of the Internet age, like spam.
- If we pass laws making it illegal both to send spam and to hire spammers to do so on your behalf then we're part way to solving the problem.
1.1Unwanted or intrusive advertising on the Internet: [as modifier]: an autogenerated spam website...
- Online marketing isn't about banner ads and spam, it's about creating dialogue and community with an audience, and always has been.
- It doesn't matter if you're selling diamond mines, weight loss tools, penis surgery or refrigerator dehumidifiers - spam is going to take your brand down.
- Consumers see spam as a sign of disrespect and dishonesty.
2 (Spam) trademark A tinned meat product made mainly from ham.Sammy Leslie and Ultan Bannon know that wine lovers want good wines first and good trimmings after, so there are no stray tins of spam here....
- A guy in California used a wireless laptop to send thousands of spam messages.
verb [with object]
Send the same message indiscriminately to (a large number of Internet users).Experts at Sophos have warned users to be wary of unsolicited emails claiming to contain photographs, after a Trojan horse was spammed to internet users....
- Normally when discussing the history of spam, we look back to a lawyer who spammed newsgroups about 10 years ago.
- This bulletin is being spammed via email and it tries to con users into downloading a new Microsoft security update.
Origin
1930s: apparently from sp(iced h)am. The Internet sense appears to derive from a sketch by the British ‘Monty Python’ comedy group, set in a cafe in which every item on the menu includes spam.