chaffer
1 Americannoun
verb (used without object)
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to bargain; haggle.
to chaffer over a price.
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to bandy words; chatter.
to chaffer about nothing in particular.
verb (used with object)
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to bandy (words).
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Obsolete. to trade or deal in; barter.
noun
verb
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(intr) to haggle or bargain
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to chatter, talk, or say idly; bandy (words)
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obsolete (tr) to deal in; barter
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of chaffer1
1175–1225; Middle English chaffare, derivative of chapfare trading journey, equivalent to Old English cēap trade ( see cheap) + faru journey; see fare
Origin of chaffer2
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.
There appraisers sit with ancient scales, chaffer to the utmost kran,* seal their purchase with a solemn glass of tea.
From Time Magazine Archive
I wisht I'd 'a' had him runnin' the 'Guzzuh' instead of that little chicken-breasted chaffer they three-shelled on to me in Los Angeles.
From Overland Red A Romance of the Moonstone Cañon Trail by Fischer, Anton Otto
Ah! honest love would make no chaffer thus!
From Myra's Well A Tale of All-Hallow-E'en by Dawson, George Francis
Now take block plane and chaffer off each side an inch or more up and round it off.
From Deadfalls and Snares A Book of Instruction for Trappers About These and Other Home-Made Traps by Harding, A. R. (Arthur Robert)
"Keep your chaffer still, won't 'ee!" snarled the other.
From Our Admirable Betty A Romance by Farnol, Jeffery
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.
