be a ham

To exaggerate a performance or act in an overstated or over-the-top manner, often to the level of being irksome or inappropriate. This is a serious play, so please don't be a ham out there. My toddlers are always real hams whenever we have company over. That actor is such a ham in every role—he always ends up annoying me.

be on (one's) wavelength

To be in agreement with one; to think or behave similarly or harmoniously. I was surprised that we became friends so quickly, but she's just always on my wavelength. A: "How does Indian food sound?" B: "That's what I was going to suggest! Wow, you're totally on my wavelength tonight." You're on my wavelength, then, because I also think Caroline's the best candidate for the job!

be under (one's) wing

To be protected, tutored, nurtured, or cared for by one. I was nervous starting an internship at my uncle's company, but it definitely made it easier being under his wing. Our parents died when we were quite young, so my sister and I were under our grandmother's wing for most of our lives. Countless kids have been under the social worker's wing over the years, and many of them stay in contact with him years later.

better than a ham sandwich

cliché Not especially desirable, beneficial, or worthy of excitement, but still better than nothing. I mean, it was nice of him, but what will I do with a bowling ball? Oh well, better than a ham sandwich, I suppose! A: "Twenty long years of service, and all they're giving me is this cheap watch!" B: "Still, it's better than a ham sandwich!" They're offering us $1,000 per person for the settlement. It's not much, but I guess it's better than a ham sandwich.

ham it up

To act in an exaggerated way, typically in order to be funny. Your daughter loves to ham it up for the camera—you might have a little actress on your hands! This is a serious play, so please don't ham it up out there. My toddlers always seem to ham it up whenever we have company over.

See also: ham, up

ham up

To exaggerate a performance or act in an overstated or over-the-top manner, often to the level of being irksome or inappropriate. A noun or pronoun can be used between "ham" and "up." This is a serious play, so please don't ham up your part. My toddlers like to ham it up whenever we have company. With the way your daughter hams it up, you might have a future actress on your hands.

See also: ham, up

ham-fisted

1. Uncoordinated or clumsy with one's hands. My mother does beautiful calligraphy, but I'm so ham-fisted that I can barely hold the pen. No, I'm too ham-fisted to repair that delicate figurine. What were you thinking, letting John hold that priceless antique? You know that boy's ham-fisted!

2. Inept in one's personal interactions. Tommy is so ham-fisted that he'll never be able to mediate this situation. Please, you're too ham-fisted—you'll never be able to sweet-talk the neighbor to help you out with this. Geez, you need to use some finesse! You can't be so ham-fisted if you're hoping for a reconciliation here.

ham-handed

In a clumsy manner; lacking care and skill. The candidate's ham-handed attempts to woo voters just ended up annoying them. Sorry for all the typos—I'm too ham-handed to hit the right keys on this tiny keyboard. Geez, you need to use some finesse! You can't be so ham-handed if you're hoping for a reconciliation here.

if we had ham we could have ham and eggs, if we had eggs

A humorous phrase used to emphasize that one is lacking the things necessary to take some specific action. A: "If I had the money to go to college, it would ultimately put me on the path to a better career." B: "Yeah, well, if we had ham we could have ham and eggs, if we had eggs." Sure, you could record some music, if you actually owned a guitar! And if we had ham we could have ham and eggs, if we had eggs. A: "I just wish I earned a little bit more money than I do now." B: "Well, if we had ham we could have ham and eggs, if we had eggs."

See also: and, could, egg, ham, have, if, we

HAM

rude slang An abbreviation for "hard as a motherfucker." Usually used as an intensifier. We lost because the other team went HAM from the opening face-off to the final buzzer—and we sure didn't. My parents went HAM on me when they saw I'm failing four classes. If I don't get my grades up, I'll be grounded for life! A: "Geez, you sure went HAM on that cheeseburger." B: "What, I'm starving!"

ham

One who exaggerates a performance or acts in an overstated or over-the-top manner, often to the level of being irksome or inappropriate. This is a serious play, so please don't be a ham out there. My toddlers turn into real hams whenever we have company over. Your daughter is such a little ham! You might have a future actress on your hands.

ham something up

Fig. to make a performance seem silly by showing off or exaggerating one's part. (A show-off actor is known as a ham.) Come on, Bob. Don't ham it up! The play was going fine until Bob got out there and hammed up his part.

See also: ham, up

ham up

Exaggerate or overdo, especially with extravagant emotion, as in Hamming up the eulogy was disgraceful, especially since he didn't even know the deceased. It is also put as ham it up, meaning "overact," as in She loves to ham it up in front of the class. This idiom probably alludes to the hamfat (lard) used to remove stage makeup, mentioned in the minstrel song, "The Ham-Fat Man." From this hamfatter came to mean "an inexpert and flamboyant actor," and was in the late 1800s shortened to ham. The idiom here was first recorded in 1933.

See also: ham, up

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

ˌham it ˈup

(informal) (especially of actors) when people ham it up, they deliberately exaggerate their emotions or movements: When we realized we were being filmed, we all started behaving differently, hamming it up for the cameras.

A ham is an informal word for an actor who performs badly, especially by exaggerating emotions.

See also: ham, up

ham

1. n. an actor; a bad actor. (see also hams.) What a ham! A real showoff.

2. n. an amateur radio operator. (A nickname.) My brother is a ham, and he helped a lot during the emergency.

ham-handed

mod. lacking dexterity; clumsy. If I wasn’t so ham-handed, I could probably fix the thing myself.

hams

1. n. legs; hips. Her great hams extended over the sides of the chair.

2. n. the hamstring muscles. (Bodybuilding.) Can you think of any exercises that would be good for my hams?