%hams%

v. t. [ Ham + shackle. ] To fasten (an animal) by a rope binding the head to one of the fore legs; as, to hamshackle a horse or cow; hence, to bind or restrain; to curb. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ G. hamster. ] (Zool.) A small European rodent (Cricetus frumentarius). It is remarkable for having a pouch on each side of the jaw, under the skin, and for its migrations. Hamsters are commonly kept as a pets. [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

n. (Anat.) One of the great tendons situated in each side of the ham, or space back of the knee, and connected with the muscles of the back of the thigh. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Hamstrung; p. pr. & vb. n. Hamstringing. See String. ] To lame or disable by cutting the tendons of the ham or knee; to hough; hence, to cripple; to incapacitate; to disable. [ 1913 Webster ]

So have they hamstrung the valor of the subject by seeking to effeminate us all at home. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n. [ Ar. khamsīn, fr. khamsūn, oblique case khamsīn, fifty; -- so called because it blows for about fifty days, from April till June. ] A hot southwesterly wind in Egypt, coming from the Sahara. [ Written also Khamseen. ] [ 1913 Webster ]