MERCUTIO: That’s as much as to say, such a case as yours constrains a man to bow in the hams.
ROMEO: Meaning, to court’sy.
MERCUTIO: Thou hast most kindly hit it.
ROMEO: A most courteous exposition.
MERCUTIO: Nay, I am the very pink of courtesy.
ROMEO: Pink for flower.
MERCUTIO: Right.
ROMEO: Why, then is my pump well flowered.
MERCUTIO: Well said: follow me this jest now till thou hast worn out thy pump, that when the single sole of it is worn, the jest may remain after the wearing sole singular.
ROMEO: O single-soled jest, solely singular for the singleness.
– William Shakespeare
Romeo and Juliet, Act 2, Scene 4. This scene between Mercutio and Romeo is full of sexual puns and wordplay. Mercutio thinks that his friend has spent a passionate night with Rosaline and doesn’t miss the opportunity to tease him about it. On the surface the two friends may seem to be talking about courteous behavior and shoes decorated with flowers. But "bow in the hams" can suggest the movement of a man during sexual intercourse. "Pink…flower" can be taken as a reference to the female genitalia. And "pump," while meaning shoe, can also refer to the male penis, with "well flowered" meaning that Romeo has deflowered a young woman. Mercutio is a quick-witted character who is not shy about bawdy jokes, and on this occasion Romeo seems to be playing along and entering into the spirit too.