/ hæm; NAmE / noun , verb
■ noun
1.
[ C , U ] the top part of a pig's leg that has been cured (= preserved using salt or smoke) and is eaten as food; the meat from this :
The hams were cooked whole.
a slice of ham
a ham sandwich
—compare bacon , gammon , pork
2.
[ C ] a person who sends and receives radio messages as a hobby rather than as a job :
a radio ham
3.
[ C ] ( informal ) (often used as an adjective) an actor who performs badly, especially by exaggerating emotions :
a ham actor
4.
[ C , usually pl. ] ( informal ) the back part of a person's leg above the knee
—see also hamstring
■ verb
( -mm- )
•
IDIOMS
- ham it up
••
WORD ORIGIN
noun sense 1 and noun sense 4 Old English ham , hom (originally denoting the back of the knee), from a Germanic base meaning be crooked. In the late 15th cent. the term came to denote the back of the thigh, hence the thigh or hock of an animal.
verb and noun senses 2 to 3 late 19th cent. (originally US): perhaps from the first syllable of amateur ; compare with the US slang term hamfatter inexpert performer . Sense 2 dates from the early 20th cent.