chafe
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to wear or abrade by rubbing.
He chafed his shoes on the rocks.
-
to make sore by rubbing.
Her collar chafed her neck.
-
to irritate; annoy.
The dripping of the faucet chafed her nerves.
- Synonyms:
- provoke, trouble, vex, exasperate
-
to warm by rubbing.
to chafe cold hands.
-
Obsolete. to heat; make warm.
verb (used without object)
-
to become worn or sore from rubbing.
His neck began to chafe from the starched collar.
-
to rub; press with friction.
The horse chafed against his stall.
-
to be irritated or annoyed.
He chafed at their constant interruptions.
noun
-
irritation; annoyance.
-
heat, wear, or soreness caused by rubbing.
idioms
verb
-
to make or become sore or worn by rubbing
-
(tr) to warm (the hands, etc) by rubbing
-
to irritate or be irritated or impatient
he was chafed because he was not allowed out
-
(intr; often foll by on, against, etc) to cause friction; rub
-
See champ 1
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
chafesimple
-
chafessimple
-
have chafedperfect
-
has chafedperfect
-
am chafingprogressive
-
are chafingprogressive
-
is chafingprogressive
-
have been chafingperfect progressive
-
has been chafingperfect progressive
Past
-
chafedsimple
-
had chafedperfect
-
was chafingprogressive
-
were chafingprogressive
-
had been chafingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of chafe
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English chaufen “to heat, rub,” from Middle French chaufer, from Vulgar Latin calfāre (unrecorded), variant of Latin cal(e)facere, from cale-, stem of calēre “to be hot” + facere “to do, make”
Explanation
To chafe is to irritate or annoy. If your shoes chafe you, they rub your skin raw. Ouch. If you chafe at the suggestion that you should be studying more, the suggestion rubs you the wrong way. Chafe originally meant to warm, like a chafing dish on a hotel buffet. Though this may seem like a big jump, think of when your hands are cold and you rub them together to warm them up. So you can say that rubbed skin is kind of hot as is a temper flaring up from irritation. If you are a hot head, you are easily chafed.
Vocabulary lists containing chafe
Touching Spirit Bear
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The Odyssey
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Ender's Game
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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.
See Examples For:
They too, however, increasingly chafe at state-imposed restrictions and high-level corruption.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 7, 2026
Investors, though, have found various reasons to chafe at Microsoft’s story.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 30, 2026
They might chafe at the regulatory sovereignty of American regulators, especially as other jurisdictions are attempting to establish themselves as crypto centers.
From Barron's ● Nov. 19, 2025
But others chafe at the bit to let loose the dogs of their wild-eyed fantasies.
From Slate ● Oct. 6, 2025
“You’re freezing,” Encanis said and began to chafe my arms and legs with his hands, trying to get my blood flowing again.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
This chafes against the restraint demanded by his current role, which has historically been carried out in humbler fashion.
From Slate ● Jun. 11, 2026
Saudi Arabia still chafes at the limits to its influence with the White House.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 21, 2025
Pimples or a rash in the area of the breasts or on the upper back, caused by a bra that chafes, is not clean or is made of material that is allergenic or not breathable.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 20, 2024
North’s performance chafes in vain against the material’s ick factor, to curious and frustrating ends.
From New York Times ● Mar. 3, 2023
He chafes at the idea of going back to the Netherlands.
From "Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers" by Deborah Heiligman
Elon Musk has also chafed at Apple’s control of the digital economy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
Young and Cox increasingly chafed at Britain’s postwar plans for Greece.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 31, 2026
The U.A.E., one of the world’s largest oil producers, had long chafed at Saudi-backed production constraints.
From MarketWatch ● May 3, 2026
Also on CNN, top Democrats chafed at the idea of deploying ICE agents to do a job they aren’t trained to do.
From Salon ● Mar. 22, 2026
His foot throbbed, his shoulders ached, and his armpits were so chafed that they were bleeding.
From "Pax" by Sara Pennypacker
Summer can be tough if you struggle with sweating or chafing.
From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026
With each stride, I squirmed deeper into the Florsheims’ tapered toes in a vain effort to spare my chafing heels.
From Slate ● Jun. 5, 2026
While Mr. Scharf is chafing to get off the planet, Mr. Willis is happy to let robots do the grunt work of searching for ETs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 9, 2026
Analysts predict that consumers, already chafing at rising subscription fees for streaming services, will be spending even more if the deal goes through.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 5, 2025
Without the strong support of life with his parents and siblings under one roof and chafing under foster parents and teachers imposing limited state policies, Malcolm simply dropped out.
From "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" by Alex Malcolm X;Hailey
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.
