hamming

1 8.1

Acting that is too dramatic and seems fake

noun
/ˈhæmɪŋ/

: exageración

The actor was notorious for his hamming, often overdramatic in every scene he played.

Examples

I didn't like the style of the filming, and I really didn't like all the hamming for the camera.

Blog text (31)
I'm not suggesting that over-the-top hamming is an appropriate course of action as a rule.

Blog text (9)
But it was, you know, Pretty Woman, the same tune except David hamming it up and Eddie with his sound.
Yeah, they're they're both like crying and like acting like hamming it up like crazy.
She loved to ham it up during rehearsals, making her performances unforgettable.
During the play, he was clearly hamming, eliciting laughter from the audience with his exaggerated gestures.

Synonyms

histrionics

vshamming

6 9.1

Very dramatic behavior that tries to get attention

is the act of overperforming mainly for expressive or stylistic reasons

overacting

vshamming

Specialized

1 5.1

Acting with too much emotion so it does not seem real

is the same exaggerated performing style but used more generally

melodramatics

vshamming

1 7.2

A person's exaggerated emotional behavior often shown in speech or acting

is focused on acting exaggeration rather than only dramatic emotional tone

cabotinage

vshamming

Archaic

1 9.9

A loud, showy kind of acting that looks fake and draws attention

is the acting excess itself rather than merely showy display

campiness

vshamming

1 7.9

A style that is exaggerated and showy to be funny or to make fun

is exaggerated acting meant seriously rather than for humour or irony

hamminess

vshamming

8.1

Acting in an exaggerated, showy way that feels loud and not natural

is the act of performing in that exaggerated way rather than the quality

theatricalism

vshamming

8.4

A way of behaving that is dramatic and exaggerated to attract attention

is the specific exaggerated acting behaviour rather than a general dramatic style

Antonyms

to underact

Jargon

7.4

To show too little feeling when playing a role

Compounds

Hamming code

Specialized

7.0

A method that adds extra bits to digital data to find and fix one-bit errors

How Dramatic

histrionics

6 9.1

overacting

Specialized

1 5.1

hamming

1 8.1

wooden performance

7.2

Surface Forms

hamming singular

hammings plural

Morphology

hamming = ham (transparent) = ham + ing

Standard gerund/participle formation from the verb 'ham' meaning 'to overact'; the noun 'hamming' denotes the action/state directly derived from that verb.

Etymology

Hamming comes from the slang ham, used for an actor who overacts, and from the phrase ham it up, a popular way to say 'overdo' a scene. So hamming means performing in an exaggerated or overdramatic way.