ham

v. i. (Theater) To act with exaggerated voice and gestures; to overact. [ PJC ]

ham it up to act in a showy fashion or to act so as to attract attention; to ham. [ Colloq. ] [ PJC ]

n. [ AS. ham; akin to D. ham, dial. G. hamme, OHG. hamma. Perh. named from the bend at the ham, and akin to E. chamber. Cf. Gammon ham. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. (Anat.) The region back of the knee joint; the popliteal space; the hock. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The thigh of any animal; especially, the thigh of a hog cured by salting and smoking. [ 1913 Webster ]

A plentiful lack of wit, together with most weak hams. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. [ Short for hamfatter. ] a person who performs in a showy or exaggerated style; -- used especially of actors. Also used attributively, as, a ham actor. [ PJC ]

2. The licensed operator of an amateur radio station. [ PJC ]

n.; pl. E. Hamadryads L. Hamadryades [ L. Hamadryas, -adis, Gr. "Amadrya`s; "a`ma together + dry^s oak, tree: cf. F. hamadryade. See Same, and Tree. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. (Class. Myth.) A tree nymph whose life ended with that of the particular tree, usually an oak, which had been her abode. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Zool.) A large venomous East Indian snake (Ophiophagus bungarus), allied to the cobras. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ L., a hamadryad. See Hamadryad. ] (Zool.) The sacred baboon of Egypt (Cynocephalus Hamadryas). [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ Written also hammal, hummaul, hamaul, khamal, etc. ] [ Turk. & Ar. hammāl, fr. Ar. hamala to carry. ] In Turkey and other Oriental countries, a porter or burden bearer; specif., in Western India, a palanquin bearer. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. A natural family of plants comprising the genera Hamamelis; Corylopsis; Fothergilla; Liquidambar; Parrotia; and other small genera.
Syn. -- family Hamamelidaceae, witch-hazel family. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. a group of chiefly woody plants considered among the most primitive of angiosperms; they have a perianth poorly developed or lacking, and flowers often unisexual and often in catkins and often wind pollinated. The group contains 23 families including the Betulaceae and Fagaceae (includes the Amentiferae); sometimes it is classified as a superorder.
Syn. -- subclass Hamamelidae. [ WordNet 1.5 ]