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A quick [Edict](http://www.edrdg.org/cgi-
bin/wwwjdic/wwwjdic?1MUJ%E3%82%AC%E3%83%A0),
[Kotobank](http://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%82%AC%E3%83%A0?dic=daijisen&oid=03603200),
[Excite.co.jp](http://www.excite.co.jp/dictionary/english_japanese/?search=%E3%82%AC%E3%83%A0&match=beginswith&dictionary=NEW_EJJE&block=59503&offset=1818&title=%E3%82%AC%E3%83%A0),
and [Goo](http://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/leaf/je2/13518/m0u/%E3%82%AC%E3%83%A0/)
search on ガム shows that it is an abbreviation for チューインガム.

[Google
results](https://www.google.co.jp/search?q=%E3%82%AC%E3%83%A0&tbm=isch) for ガム
also seems to suggest so. (Notice that the results only show チューインガム and no
[風船ガム](https://www.google.co.jp/search?q=%E9%A2%A8%E8%88%B9%E3%82%AC%E3%83%A0&tbm=isch))

But can ガム be used to mean "[bubble
gum](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bubble_gum)", or is it actually already a
_codified_ term for "chewing gums"?

Take for example we have both a chewing gum and a bubble gum on a table. Will
"ガム持ってきて" be ambiguous because ガム can refer to both items? Or would it non-
ambiguous because in that context, ガム will most surely be referring to the
chewing gum?

Note: Bubble gums can be blown, like a balloon coming straight out of the
mouth. Chewing gums can't achieve that, no matter how hard one tries.
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question
word-usage
Can ガム mean "bubble gum"?
I don't quite understand the question, but ガム means in all contexts some type
of chewing gum (which includes bubble gum).

The word バブルガム is used sometimes, but not necessarily understood to mean
"bubble gum"; it may refer to a particular branded chewing gum (e.g. Xylitol
Trident Bubblegum).

There is the word 風船ガム which means "inflatable gum", so I guess, this would be
the default choice to distinguish blowable gum from unblowable gum.

For other conceivable contexts where "gum" might be used (e.g. a water seal,
anything rubbery), there is the etymologically related word ゴム.
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Sure, ガム can be used to refer to bubble gum.

ガム is short for チューインガム, and according to 広辞苑, 風船ガム is a type of チューインガム:

> **ふうせん-ガム【風船ガム】**  
>  息を吹き入れて風船のようにふくらますことのできる **チューインガム** 。

And if you look online, you can find people saying ガムを膨{ふく}らます. Sure,
sometimes they write 風船ガム, but sometimes it's just ガム. For example, take a
look at [this question on OKWave](http://okwave.jp/qa/q2696097.html):

> **ガムを膨らます** ことが出来ますか？
>
> ...
>
> そこで質問なんですが、あなたは **ガムを膨らます** ことが出来ますか？  
>  私の回答は「 **風船ガム** ならいつでも可、 **普通のガム** なら二個以上なら可」です。

Here, they talk about how they can always manage to blow bubbles with 風船ガム
"bubble gum", which they compare to 普通のガム "regular gum". And the question
title simply says ガム, which appears to be a hypernym of both 風船ガム and 普通のガム.
If ガム really didn't include 風船ガム, the question title would be confusing, and
they wouldn't have had to specify 「普通の」 in the question body—just saying ガム
would be enough. Obviously, that isn't the case!

The same goes for the top answer on the question. Here's an excerpt:

> **ガムを膨らます** ことは出来ました。  
>  **どんなガムでも** OKです。

You can find plenty more examples like these. As you can see, people don't
have trouble understanding 風船ガム (or バブルガム) as a type of ガム.
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