hamstring
Americannoun
-
hamstrings
plural
-
(in humans and other primates) any of the tendons that bound the ham of the knee.
-
(in quadrupeds) the great tendon at the back of the hock.
verb (used with object)
-
hamstrings,
present (3rd person singular)
-
hamstrung,
past participle, past
-
hamstringing
present participle
noun
-
anatomy any of the tendons at the back of the knee
-
the large tendon at the back of the hock in the hind leg of a horse, etc
verb
-
to cripple by cutting the hamstring of
-
to ruin or thwart
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
hamstringsimple
-
hamstringssimple
-
have hamstrungperfect
-
has hamstrungperfect
-
am hamstringingprogressive
-
are hamstringingprogressive
-
is hamstringingprogressive
-
have been hamstringingperfect progressive
-
has been hamstringingperfect progressive
Past
-
hamstrungsimple
-
had hamstrungperfect
-
was hamstringingprogressive
-
were hamstringingprogressive
-
had been hamstringingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of hamstring
Explanation
Your hamstrings are groups of muscles and tendons between your hips and knees. If you pull a hamstring while running or jumping, you'll feel pain at the back of your thigh. Ouch! The hamstring muscle group is one of the most powerful in your body — attached to the knee and hip, these are the muscles and tendons that make it possible for you to run, walk, and jump. It's fairly common for athletes to injure their hamstrings and be (temporarily) immobilized. Fittingly, hamstring is also a verb meaning "render powerless." So an astronaut might complain that a lack of funding will hamstring NASA, making planned Mars voyages impossible.
Vocabulary lists containing hamstring
This Week in Words: December 1 - 7 , 2018
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Physical Education - Middle School and High School
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Planet Middle School
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The Rams are already thin at receiver in the wake of a hamstring injury suffered by Davante Adams during the Rams’ 18-16 defeat by the Arizona Cardinals last Sunday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026
The Rams also placed receiver Davante Adams and defensive lineman Poona Ford on injured reserve because of hamstring and triceps injuries, respectively.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2026
The hosts look likely to include attack leader Kagiso Rabada after the pace bowler missed the first Test as part of his recovery from a hamstring injury.
From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026
They also were without All-Pro safety Derwin James Jr., who missed a second game with a hamstring injury, and No. 1 receiver Ladd McConkey, hobbled by an injured foot.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2026
For hamstring stretches, one person lies on the grass on his back with his leg straight up, while the other person leans in and slowly presses the leg a little higher.
From "A High Five for Glenn Burke" by Phil Bildner
In practice, this means “exercises that build your butt while minimizing growth in the quads, hamstrings and thighs.”
From Salon ● May 8, 2026
I am not a medical expert but, if Dewsbury-Hall or Grealish have hurt their hamstrings in any way, which is what has been reported, then there is no way they will be fit for Saturday.
From BBC ● Dec. 18, 2025
Uphills exact a harsh toll on an athlete’s hamstrings, glutes and calves while spiking their heart rate.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2025
If you’re sitting at a desk all day, you’re not contracting your calves, quads and hamstrings and fluid pools in the ankles due to gravity.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 18, 2025
She turned to him as they made their way to the dressing room, stopping right beside a couple of people stretching their hamstrings, who paused to give them thumbs-up signs before resuming their stretches.
From "When Dimple Met Rishi" by Sandhya Menon
Faced with rising borrowing costs, a deficit of 5.4% of GDP and a public debt at its highest level since the 1940s, Lecornu is financially as well as politically hamstrung.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
Sellers not only will be wary of trading in their 3% rate, but also know that they may have to lower their list price to draw buyers whose affordability is hamstrung by 7% rates.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
Unfortunately, the production is hamstrung by fundamental problems in the writing, directing and acting, all pointing to a failure of control.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026
With Farage no longer an MP and fighting his own by-election in Clacton in Essex - he is hamstrung when it comes to devoting as much time and energy to Greater Manchester.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
The aftermath was horrific, with media reports showing hospitals without backup power, distraught families herded into the Superdome, emergency workers hamstrung by a lack of supplies.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
“My biggest concern is that they may be hamstringing themselves in developing their model,” CFRA’s Snyder said.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 27, 2026
Bank executives say rewards programs could drain their firms of deposits, hamstringing their ability to lend.
From Barron's ● Mar. 9, 2026
Challenges to get it done include market conditions that are hamstringing other planned real estate developments.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2025
They're hamstringing billions of dollars of cancer research by putting on leave the people who make sure that the research dollars go to cancer researchers.
From Salon ● Apr. 10, 2025
Now the endless indignities, invasion of personal rights and freedom, the hamstringing of his work, the feeling of being cut off from the main currents of his field, filled him with despair, anger, and frustration.
From Security by Ernest M. Kenyon
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
