# hamble

> English word · Verb

## Definitions
1. To mutilate; hamstring; cut away.
2. To cut out the balls of the feet of (dogs) so as to render them unfit for hunting.
3. To walk lame; limp.

## Etymology
From Middle English hamelen, from Old English hamelian (“to hamstring, mutilate”), from Proto-Germanic *hamalōną, *hamlōną (“to mutilate”), from Proto-Indo-European *kem- (“mutilated, hornless”). Cognate with German hammeln, hämmeln (“to geld”), Icelandic hamla (“to mutilate, maim”), Dutch hamel (“wether”).

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/hamble