chug

¹ American  

[chuhg] / tʃʌg /

noun

1. a short, dull, explosive sound.

   the steady chug of an engine.

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verb (used without object)

chugged, chugging

1. to make this sound.

   The motor chugged.

2. to move while making this sound.

   The train chugged along.

chug ² American  

[chuhg] / tʃʌg /

verb (used with or without object)

chugged, chugging

1. Also to swallow (a drink) in large gulps or without interruption.

   He noisily chugged the entire bottle of water, then slammed it onto the table.

   She was just sitting on the bench, chugging away on a bottle of soda.

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noun

1. a large gulp or swallow.

   He finished his beer in two chugs.

chug British  

/ tʃʌɡ /

noun

1. a short dull sound, esp one that is rapidly repeated, such as that made by an engine

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verb

1. (intr) (of an engine, etc) to operate while making such sounds

Other Word Forms

• chugger
  noun

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Etymology

Origin of chug¹

An Americanism dating back to 1865–70; imitative

Origin of chug²

First recorded in 1955–60, as chug down; of imitative origin

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

chug chugged chugging

The boilerplate praise chug of the song has one upside: It forces the “Rap God” to slow down.

From Salon ● Oct. 21, 2026

All three major U.S. stock indexes ended last week at fresh highs and are continuing to chug along this year.

From Barron's ● May 31, 2026

WSJ | Buy Side: The Owala FreeSip water bottle has it all: a unique top that lets you sip or chug, stainless steel to keep water cold all day and special color offerings.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 2026

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor left Windsor not with a regal fanfare, but with the chug of removal lorries, heading for Norfolk in the night.

From BBC ● Feb. 4, 2026

“You mean, besides the fact that my plane crashed on a hostile island, we haven’t eaten in days, you want me to chug a bug, and you keep calling me New Hampshire?”

From "Beauty Queens" by Libba Bray

A generator chugged loudly outside, supplying electricity after the power had been cut off.

From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2026

As San Diego chugged through its lineup, Sasaki struggled to keep up.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 3, 2026

Massie even chugged a celebratory glass of raw milk.

From Slate ● May 20, 2026

The investment bank and financial-services firm chugged along for years without much notice, specializing in bond trading and deals in risky corners of the finance world that competitors avoided.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 26, 2025

Mobs of people, beautifully dressed, were floundering through snowdrifts and the great black official cars chugged through streets clanking chains.

From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck

But for stock investors, the current level of inflation isn’t terrible and isn’t stopping the economy from chugging along, Zaccarelli says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

Meanwhile, Cardi’s career campaign keeps chugging along fiercely.

From Salon ● Oct. 27, 2026

U.S. stocks have kept chugging higher this year, but bonds haven’t been able to shake off a five-year slump.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 24, 2026

Walk around New York and you'll likely hear the chugging of petrol generators powering the city's tens of thousands of food carts.

From Barron's ● Jul. 25, 2026

He kept waking him up to drink the sugarwater, the boy’s dry throat jerking and chugging.

From "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy

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