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

plural

chesses

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

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chess ³ American  

[ches] / tʃɛs /

noun

plural

chess, chesses

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”

Example Sentences

Weinstein, a chess ace known for taking down a JPMorgan Chase trader known as the “London Whale,” has a history of targeting investment trusts and their U.S. equivalents, closed-end funds.

From The Wall Street Journal

Like other exiled Iranians, chess champion Mitra Hejazipour has been scouring social media for news about anti-government protests in her homeland and battling to reach friends and family through an ongoing internet shutdown.

From Barron's

Speculation is rampant that Gorman and the board will make similar chess moves at Disney.

From Los Angeles Times

Andrew also likes to cover the oddities of the rapidly booming chess world.

From The Wall Street Journal

In exchange, British treasures including artefacts from Anglo-Saxon burial mounds at Sutton Hoo and 12th Century Lewis chess pieces are being loaned to museums in Normandy.

From BBC