to crack, roughen, and redden (the skin).
The windy, cold weather chapped her lips.
to cause (the ground, wood, etc.) to split, crack, or open in clefts.
The summer heat and drought chapped the riverbank.
a fissure or crack, especially in the skin.
Scot. a knock; rap.
Chiefly British Informal: Older Use. a fellow; man or boy.
Chiefly Midland and Southern U.S. a baby or young child.
British Dialect. a customer.
Chaplain.
chapter.
(of the skin) to make or become raw and cracked, esp by exposure to cold
(of a clock) to strike (the hour)
to knock (at a door, window, etc)
(usually plural) a cracked or sore patch on the skin caused by chapping
a knock
chaplain
chapter
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English chappen “(of a fruit) to split open, burst; (of skin) to crack, chap”; cognate with Dutch kappen “to cut”; akin to chip 1
First recorded in 1570–80; short for chapman
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English chop, chappe “jaw, jawbone”; perhaps special use of chap 1
A chap is a guy or a fellow — a boy or man who's a friend, acquaintance, or a friendly stranger. You might ask a chap on the bus if the seat beside him is free. You can refer to any male person as a chap, and you can also address him that way: "Hello there, old chap! I haven't seen you in ages!" It's more common in Britain than the US, where the chap will know what you mean but might look at you oddly. Chaps also means a cowboy's leather pants, and when it's a verb chap means to become dry, cracked, and painful from wind or cold.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Mark Swales, who has lived in the area for 25 years, said his neighbour had been a "very nice chap".
From BBC • May 13, 2026
He sips small amounts of ice water because drinking too much is akin to licking one’s lips, causing them to chap.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 3, 2026
As an honest broker from the moderate left, notwithstanding his Trump fixation, Mr. Traub may be the chap to get the message across.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 16, 2026
"We were approached by a chap called Augusto Odone who was the father of Lorenzo, which the product is named after," he recalls.
From BBC • Dec. 14, 2025
“Look here, Pellinore, you must learn to let bygones be bygones. You will only wear yourself out Why don't you be a brave chap and catch your Beast for instance?”
From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White
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.
