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hamstring

ham·string

hamstring

 
pronunciation:
haem strIng
parts of speech:
noun, transitive verb
part of speech: noun
definition 1: one of two tendons at the hollow of a human knee.
definition 2: the large tendon at the back of the hock in a four-legged animal.
definition 3: any of three muscles at the back of the human thigh that are used to flex the knee, rotate the leg, and extend the thigh.
 
part of speech: transitive verb
inflections: hamstrings, hamstringing, hamstrung
definition 1: to disable or cripple by cutting the tendon at the back of the knee in a human or the hock in an animal.
definition 2: to disable or thwart.
Production was hamstrung by lack of capital.