Sham Appeared as Slang and Nobody Knows From Where
A sham is a thing that is not what it pretends to be. Its origin has never been traced.
A sham is something false presented as genuine, and as an adjective it means counterfeit. It burst into English around 1670 as fashionable slang and was noted at the time as a new word from the north of England; the most-cited guess is that it is a northern pronunciation of *shame*, but nobody has proved it. The word arrived with a whole set of Restoration slang including *banter* and *bully*. A *sham* is also a decorative pillowcase, from the sense of a cover pretending to be the real thing.
- A pretence. *The whole thing is a sham.*
- Counterfeit. *A sham diamond.*
- To feign. *Shamming illness.*
- A pillow cover. *A pillow sham.*
- Unknown origin. *About 1670.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | sham | A sham. |
| Adjective | sham | A sham fight. |
| Verb | sham | Shamming. |
| Related | shambolic | Shambolic. |
| Possible source | shame | Shame. |
- The election was a sham.Pretence.
- He shammed a limp.Verb.
- It appeared around 1670.History.
Restoration slang that survived
- Sham — a pretence
- Banter — teasing talk, also new and untraceable
- Bully — originally a fine fellow, then a tormentor
- Mob — from Latin *mobile vulgus*, clipped short
- Contemporaries complained about all of these as vulgar novelties
Origin unknown, recorded from about 1670, possibly a northern dialect form of *shame*.
Where does sham come from?
Nobody knows. It appeared as slang around 1670, possibly as a northern English pronunciation of shame.
Why is a pillowcase called a sham?
Because a decorative cover pretends to be the real pillow, using the sense of something presenting a false front.