chess

¹ American  

[ches] / tʃɛs /

noun

1. a game played on a chessboard by two people who maneuver sixteen pieces each according to rules governing movement of the six kinds of pieces (pawn, rook, knight, bishop, queen, king), the object being to bring the opponent's king into checkmate.

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chess ² American  

[ches] / tʃɛs /

noun

chesses plural

1. any of several weedy species of bromegrass, especially Bromus secalinus.

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chess ³ American  

[ches] / tʃɛs /

noun

chesses plural

1. one of the planks forming the roadway of a floating bridge.

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chess ¹ British  

/ tʃɛs /

noun

1. a game of skill for two players using a chessboard on which chessmen are moved. Initially each player has one king, one queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights, and eight pawns, which have different types of moves according to kind. The object is to checkmate the opponent's king

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chess ² British  

/ tʃɛs /

noun

1. a less common name for rye-brome

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chess ³ British  

/ tʃɛs /

noun

1. a floorboard of the deck of a pontoon bridge

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Etymology

Origin of chess¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English che(e)s, chesse, echesse, esches, from Old French esches, plural of eschec check ¹

Origin of chess²

First recorded in 1735–40; origin unknown

Origin of chess³

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English ches “tier, layer,” possibly alteration of Middle French chasse “frame”

Explanation

Chess is a game that's played on a checked board by two players. The goal in chess is to put your opponent's king piece in a position from which it can't escape. A game of chess begins with sixteen black pieces on one side of the board, opposite sixteen white pieces. Each piece can perform a different movement, and each turn involves a player moving a piece in an attempt to attack and remove her opponent's pieces, and to trap the opposing king. Really good chess players learn a lot of strategy and might even compete professionally. Chess comes from the Old French esches, "chessmen," and also "checks."

Example Sentences

After IBM’s Deep Blue supercomputer scored a landmark victory over chess champion Garry Kasparov in 1997, researchers sought new simulations to push the frontiers of machine intelligence.

From MarketWatch • May 23, 2026

Emery manages to find time during his days to open his chess app and play three-minute online games against all-comers.

From BBC • May 20, 2026

“It is like a giant chess game, in which we need to continue to keep trying to anticipate the next movement, and to overcome it to plan our next move,” Grant told me.

From Slate • May 18, 2026

But the showmanship only works as well as it does because the actors are so adept at tracking the chess moves of characters who are always trying to stay one step ahead of danger.

From Los Angeles Times • May 5, 2026

I have offended you and your country, the Soviet Union, where chess has a prestigious position.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady