chimney

American  

[chim-nee] / ˈtʃɪm ni /

noun

plural

chimneys

1. a structure, usually vertical, containing a passage or flue by which the smoke, gases, etc., of a fire or furnace are carried off and by means of which a draft is created.

2. the part of such a structure that rises above a roof.

3. Now Rare. the smokestack or funnel of a locomotive, steamship, etc.

4. a tube, usually of glass, surrounding the flame of a lamp to promote combustion and keep the flame steady.

5. Geology.

   1. the vent of a volcano.

   2. a narrow vertical fissure between two rock faces or in a rock formation.

6. Mining. a nearly vertical cylindrical oreshoot.

7. British Dialect. fireplace.

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verb (used with object)

chimneyed, chimneying

1. Mountain Climbing. to ascend or descend (a chimney) by repeated bracing of one's feet or back and feet against opposite walls.

verb (used without object)

chimneyed, chimneying

1. Mountain Climbing. to ascend or descend a chimney.

chimney British  

/ ˈtʃɪmnɪ /

noun

1. a vertical structure of brick, masonry, or steel that carries smoke or steam away from a fire, engine, etc

2. another name for flue 1

3. short for chimney stack

4. an open-ended glass tube fitting around the flame of an oil or gas lamp in order to exclude draughts

5. a fireplace, esp an old and large one

6. geology

   1. a cylindrical body of an ore, which is usually oriented vertically

   2. the vent of a volcano

7. mountaineering a vertical fissure large enough for a person's body to enter

8. anything resembling a chimney in shape or function

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chimney Scientific  

/ chĭm′nē /

1. An elongated opening in a volcano through which magma reaches the Earth's surface.

2. A stack of minerals that have precipitated out of a hydrothermal vent on the floor of a sea or ocean.

3. See more at hydrothermal vent

4. An isolated column of rock along a coastline, formed by the erosion of a sea cliff by waves. Chimneys are smaller than stacks.

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Other Word Forms

• chimneyless adjective
• chimneylike adjective

Etymology

Origin of chimney

1300–50; Middle English chimenai < Middle French cheminee < Latin ( camera ) camīnāta (room) having a fireplace, equivalent to camīn ( us ) (< Greek kámīnos furnace) + -āta -ate ¹

Example Sentences

The chimney, says Akashi, is “a kind of restless object. It only functions with a home.”

From Los Angeles Times

Steam rises from chimneys, from warm patches of river, from mouths.

From Salon

It’s usual in the winter to go out in the morning and see chickens on the roof, flocked around the chimney warming themselves.

From Literature

It blew cold air down the chimney and filled the room with so much smoke that we couldn't see the stretched rope.

From Literature

His sculptures, composed of stacked forms and glazed in natural colors, bring to mind chimneys, duct work and totem poles.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• fireplace
• flue
• furnace
• hearth
• pipe
• stack
• vent