to ham

Examples

• All

• William Shatner really shines as he hams up his mobster persona, gradually assuming a thicker accent and more of the unique lingo.

  Blog text (27)

• If you want to go ham, then you can do that as well.

• I get to ham it up.

  Fiction book (1999)

• Some students do warm to public reading and declamation out of a natural theatricality; they like to "ham it up" in front of their friends.

  Academic text (2002)

• Satire writers deliberately go over the top, ham it up, and push things far beyond the range of "normal" for the satire to be effective.

  Blog text (3)

• At the party, she really hammed it up, dancing and making everyone laugh with her silly moves.

• During the performance, the actor hammed it up, exaggerating his expressions to entertain the audience.

• He tends to ham it up during rehearsals, often using funny voices and over-the-top gestures.

Synonyms

O

to overact

vsto ham

5 5.5

To act in a way that is too strong or unnatural for the scene

leans more toward theatrical, expressive gestures rather than mere unnatural excess

O

to overplay

vsto ham

5 5.2

Act in an exaggerated way that makes a performance feel unnatural

is more about dramatic showiness and stagey gestures than subtle excess

H

to ham it up

vsto ham

• Informal

4 7.4

Act in a silly, exaggerated way to make people laugh

is the standard term for the same exaggerated theatrical performance

Antonyms

P

to play it straight

5 4.2

To act honestly and directly without tricking others

U

to underact

• Jargon

7.4

To show too little feeling when playing a role

Phrasal Verbs

H

to ham it up

• Informal

4 7.4

Act in a silly, exaggerated way to make people laugh

Compounds

H

ham sandwich

12 1.0

A sandwich with sliced ham between two slices of bread

H

ham radio

• Specialized

8 5.0

A way to send and receive radio messages for fun and in emergencies

H

ham hock

4 4.8

A piece of pork from the lower leg used to flavor soups and stews

H

ham and eggs

3 1.0

A breakfast dish of fried or scrambled eggs with slices of ham

V

Virginia ham

• US

1 3.7

A lean dry-cured ham from Virginia with a smoky flavor

H

ham actor

• Offensive

1 6.8

A person who overacts in a loud, exaggerated way

H

holiday ham

1 1.6

A cooked piece of pork people serve at special meals like Christmas or Easter

H

ham-and-egger

• Offensive

9.9

A person with little skill or ambition

H

ham-fistedness

• Offensive

9.3

A lack of skill causing clumsy actions that make things worse

P

picnic ham

• US

3.5

A shoulder cut of pork that is usually smoked and cheaper than other cooked pork

How Theatrical

to chew the scenery

• Informal

1 9.6

to ham

• Informal

3 7.9

to overact

5 5.5

to emote

7 7.9

to act

∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

Etymology