Chicago
Americannoun
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Judy Judy Cohen, born 1939, U.S. artist, author, and educator.
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a city in NE Illinois, on Lake Michigan: second largest city in the U.S.
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a river formed in Chicago that flows through downtown and, as engineered, to the Des Plaines River: part of the Illinois Waterway.
noun
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Carl Sandburg, in his poem “Chicago,” called the city the “Hog Butcher for the World” because of Chicago's heavy involvement in the meatpacking industry.
During the time of Prohibition, Chicago was controlled by gangsters, Al Capone being the most notorious. Gangster warfare continued long after this particularly violent period.
Originally called the “Windy City” because the city bragged about the 1893 World Expo that was held there. The term has since come to refer to the strong northern winds that blow off the lake in the winter.
Chicago's downtown is referred to as the “Loop” because it is enclosed by elevated railways, called the “El.”
For many years the second largest city in the United States, before being displaced by Los Angeles, and therefore referred to as the “Second City.”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Once back in Chicago, I realized I had two immediate cravings: I wanted to sit outside, and I was hungry in the way people become hungry after spending several days in someone else’s kitchen.
From Salon • Jun. 9, 2026
Gutierrez moved from Chicago Fire to Guadalajara in January and helped them reach the title play-off round semi-final of Liga MX.
From BBC • Jun. 9, 2026
It’s why the Chicago Black Sox are synonymous with scandal and Pete Rose became a pariah.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 9, 2026
E-motos also have a practical appeal, said Bryce Altaffer, a Chicago bike store manager who sells them.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 7, 2026
When we boarded the train back to Chicago that evening, I was still walking on air.
From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
