cheese
1 Americannoun
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the curd of milk separated from the whey and prepared in many ways as a food.
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a definite mass of this substance, often in the shape of a wheel or cylinder.
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something of similar shape or consistency, as a mass of pulpy apple residue in cider making.
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Informal. partly digested milk curds sometimes spit up by infants.
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cheeses, any of several mallows, especially Malva neglecta, a sprawling, weedy plant having small lavender or white flowers and round, flat, segmented fruits thought to resemble little wheels of cheese.
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Slang: Vulgar. smegma.
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Slang. money.
I’m just trying to get my name out there and hopefully earn some cheese.
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Metalworking.
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a transverse section cut from an ingot, as for making into a tire.
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an ingot or billet made into a convex, circular form by blows at the ends.
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a low curtsy.
verb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
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(in a game, especially a video game) to win (a battle round) by using a strategy that requires minimal skill and knowledge or that exploits a glitch or flaw in game design.
He cheesed the fight by trapping his enemy in the environment and attacking without taking damage.
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Metalworking. to forge (an ingot or billet) into a cheese.
idioms
verb (used with object)
idioms
noun
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Slang. the cheese,
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a person or thing that is splendid or first-rate.
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something that is exactly what is wanted or required.
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noun
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the curd of milk separated from the whey and variously prepared as a food
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a mass or complete cake of this substance
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any of various substances of similar consistency, etc
lemon cheese
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slang an important person
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See chalk
verb
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(tr) to stop; desist
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slang:prison (intr) to act in a grovelling manner
Etymology
Origin of cheese1
First recorded before 1000; Middle English chese, Old English cēse (cognate with Old Saxon and Old High German kāsi, German Käse ), from Germanic kasjus, from Latin cāseus
Origin of cheese2
First recorded in 1805–15; perhaps alteration of cease
Origin of cheese3
First recorded in 1835–40 cheese 3 for def. 2; 1895–1900 cheese 3 for def. 1; from Urdu chīz “thing, valuable thing,” from Persian cīz, from Old Persian cish(-ciy) “(some)thing”
Explanation
Cheese is a dairy product that's made from milk solids. Many delicious foods are made even more delicious with melted cheese, including pizza and nachos. Cheese is made from the milk of cows, goats, sheep, or buffalo, and it's acidified before the solids are separated and pressed. There are many kinds of cheese, ranging from soft, spreadable cream cheese to hard parmesan. An old fashioned meaning of cheese is "stop" — you might say, "Cheese it!" This comes from 1800s thieves' slang, while the instruction a photographer gives, "Say cheese!" dates from the early 20th century.
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:
The White House also says Canada gives better access to European cheese under its trade deal with the continent than it does to the U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
When my neck shrine was finally finished, it was pronounced "exquisite" and left to dry, while salt beef and cream cheese beigels arrived from nearby Brick Lane.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
Veggies, salads, pizza, wings, fries, caviar, pickles, cottage cheese, ice cream—they’re all eminently ranchable.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
Crackers have spent enough time under cheese, beside soup, tucked politely next to salads and dips.
From Salon ● Jul. 14, 2026
Ridge licked the last of the cheese from his fingers.
From "The First State of Being" by Erin Entrada Kelly
And — yes — not everyone is royally cheesed off.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 1, 2026
Should this be the case, it’s understandable why Wear OS users are cheesed.
From The Verge ● Jan. 12, 2022
A slightly smaller percentage said they were cheesed by companies that bounce you around to different service reps to get a problem resolved.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2021
"The catchphrase just came about on the pilot when I got really cheesed off with a contestant and I added the goodbye", she told host Steph McGovern.
From BBC ● Feb. 15, 2021
Teeth Man cheesed and rolled to the other end of the table.
From "As Brave As You" by Jason Reynolds
These photos are a delicious slice into Glen Han’s late night experiences, from LeBron James cheesing with Tyler, the Creator at Pharrell’s Louis Vuitton show to Bella Hadid goofing off.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 11, 2025
“This is the coolest thing,” Godinez Woltman said just before snapping a photo of her daughter cheesing it up next to Juarez.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 28, 2022
He napped, and talked in his sleep, and then he woke up in conversation with himself, cheesing at the punch line.
From The New Yorker ● Jan. 13, 2020
And cheesing a baby is a quick recipe for exactly that.
From Slate ● Mar. 1, 2019
No pictures of old times and kids, bucktoothed cheesing.
From "When I Was the Greatest" by Jason Reynolds
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.
