ham·string
ˈham-ˌstriŋ 
1
a
: either of two groups of tendons at the back of the human knee
b
: any of three muscles at the back of the thigh that function to flex and rotate the leg and extend the thigh
2
: a large tendon above and behind the hock of a quadruped
hamstrung
ˈham-ˌstrəŋ
; hamstringing
ˈham-ˌstriŋ-iŋ
; hamstrings
; hamstringing
ˈham-ˌstriŋ-iŋ
; hamstrings
1
: to make ineffective or powerless : disable
hamstrung by guilt
2
: to deprive of the use of a leg by cutting the leg tendons
Synonyms
Examples of hamstring in a Sentence
Verb
The mayor tried to hamstring our efforts by cutting the budget.
The company claims it is being hamstrung by government regulations.
Recent Examples on the Web
Gary Klein, Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 2024
Wilson missed most of his freshman season because of a hamstring injury.
—Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Apr. 2024
The Pelicans received unfortunate news Wednesday when an MRI revealed that 6-foot-6, 284-pound forward Zion Williamson suffered a left hamstring strain in Tuesday’s 110-106 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the play-in tournament.
—Jason Anderson, Sacramento Bee, 18 Apr. 2024
He was selected to play in the Senior Bowl in January but strained his hamstring during practices in Mobile, Ala.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 18 Apr. 2024
The team is back in first place in the Eastern Conference standings heading into the home game Saturday against Nashville SC (7:30 p.m., Apple TV) and Messi is back to full fitness after missing nearly a month with a hamstring injury.
—Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 17 Apr. 2024
At the Combine, Schrader pulled up with a hamstring injury while running the 40-yard dash.
—Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 16 Apr. 2024
Those sports led to many injuries: concussions, hamstring strains, rotator cuff issues.
—Alexis Soloski, New York Times, 2 Apr. 2024
Bird dog The bird dog (thought to be named after the pointing position of hunting dogs) works your posterior kinetic chain muscles: the erector spinae, rectus abdominis, transverse abdominis, upper back and shoulders, hamstrings, calves and glutes.
—Melanie Radzicki McManus, CNN, 28 Mar. 2024
Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 2 Apr. 2024
Larger home associations like Oak Park, Haines said, are hamstrung because Republic is the only company big enough to service its 2,300 homes at the same time.
—Sarah Ritter, Kansas City Star, 22 Mar. 2024
But it’s been hamstrung by a need for cost transparency—and the fact that everyday people are responsible for generating the emissions too.
—Jane Thier, Fortune, 27 Feb. 2024
But cities are hamstrung by state laws that keep the exact locations of sober living homes secret.
—Alexandra Hardle, The Arizona Republic, 26 Feb. 2024
Since last week, markets have been hamstrung by the fear that inflation is going to hang around.
—Michael Foster, Forbes, 24 Feb. 2024
But the scrupulously colorblind casting also hamstrings the show from making many other narrative choices, to the detriment of its own logic and appeal.
—Naveen Kumar, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024
The major east-west corridor remained closed for a second full day and ski resorts were hamstrung to reopen as the effects of a powerful winter storm Sunday continued to plague the Sierra Nevada, and forecasters warned that more heavy snow was on the way for Northern California.
—Sacramento Bee, 3 Mar. 2024
That may signal the industry will be hamstrung by low prices in the future.
—Cameron Baker, Fortune, 14 Feb. 2024
Noun
Kupp appeared physically sound when training camp began, but he was soon sidelined because of a hamstring injury that lingered.
—Gary Klein, Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 2024
Wilson missed most of his freshman season because of a hamstring injury.
—Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Apr. 2024
The Pelicans received unfortunate news Wednesday when an MRI revealed that 6-foot-6, 284-pound forward Zion Williamson suffered a left hamstring strain in Tuesday’s 110-106 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the play-in tournament.
—Jason Anderson, Sacramento Bee, 18 Apr. 2024
He was selected to play in the Senior Bowl in January but strained his hamstring during practices in Mobile, Ala.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 18 Apr. 2024
The team is back in first place in the Eastern Conference standings heading into the home game Saturday against Nashville SC (7:30 p.m., Apple TV) and Messi is back to full fitness after missing nearly a month with a hamstring injury.
—Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 17 Apr. 2024
At the Combine, Schrader pulled up with a hamstring injury while running the 40-yard dash.
—Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 16 Apr. 2024
Those sports led to many injuries: concussions, hamstring strains, rotator cuff issues.
—Alexis Soloski, New York Times, 2 Apr. 2024
Bird dog The bird dog (thought to be named after the pointing position of hunting dogs) works your posterior kinetic chain muscles: the erector spinae, rectus abdominis, transverse abdominis, upper back and shoulders, hamstrings, calves and glutes.
—Melanie Radzicki McManus, CNN, 28 Mar. 2024
Verb
And while Big Tech companies continue to loom large with forays into the media and entertainment business, many of their streaming platforms are hardly getting off the ground, hamstrung by a lack of access to content.
—Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 2 Apr. 2024
Larger home associations like Oak Park, Haines said, are hamstrung because Republic is the only company big enough to service its 2,300 homes at the same time.
—Sarah Ritter, Kansas City Star, 22 Mar. 2024
But it’s been hamstrung by a need for cost transparency—and the fact that everyday people are responsible for generating the emissions too.
—Jane Thier, Fortune, 27 Feb. 2024
But cities are hamstrung by state laws that keep the exact locations of sober living homes secret.
—Alexandra Hardle, The Arizona Republic, 26 Feb. 2024
Since last week, markets have been hamstrung by the fear that inflation is going to hang around.
—Michael Foster, Forbes, 24 Feb. 2024
But the scrupulously colorblind casting also hamstrings the show from making many other narrative choices, to the detriment of its own logic and appeal.
—Naveen Kumar, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024
The major east-west corridor remained closed for a second full day and ski resorts were hamstrung to reopen as the effects of a powerful winter storm Sunday continued to plague the Sierra Nevada, and forecasters warned that more heavy snow was on the way for Northern California.
—Sacramento Bee, 3 Mar. 2024
That may signal the industry will be hamstrung by low prices in the future.
—Cameron Baker, Fortune, 14 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'hamstring.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near hamstring
Cite this Entry
“Hamstring.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hamstring. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
hamstring
1 of 2 noun
ham·string
ˈham-ˌstriŋ
1
: either of two groups of tendons at the back of the human knee
2
: any of three muscles at the back of the thigh that function to extend the thigh, rotate the leg, and bend the knee
hamstring
2 of 2 verb
hamstrung
-ˌstrəŋ
; hamstringing
-ˌstriŋ-iŋ
1
: to cripple by cutting the leg tendons
2
: to make ineffective or powerless : cripple
hamstrung by restrictions
Medical Definition
hamstring
1 of 2 noun
ham·string
ˈham-ˌstriŋ
1
a
: either of two groups of tendons bounding the upper part of the popliteal space at the back of the knee and forming the tendons of insertion of some muscles of the back of the thigh
b
2
: a large tendon above and behind the hock of a quadruped corresponding to the human Achilles tendon
hamstring
2 of 2 transitive verb
hamstrung
-ˌstrəŋ
; hamstringing
-ˌstriŋ-iŋ
; hamstringing
-ˌstriŋ-iŋ
: to cripple by cutting the leg tendons
folklore has it that wolf packs try to hamstring their prey—John Madson
John MadsonLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
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