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chin

[chin]
See more synonyms for chin on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the lower extremity of the face, below the mouth.
  2. the prominence of the lower jaw.
  3. Informal. chin-up.
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verb (used with object), chinned, chin·ning.
  1. Gymnastics.
    1. to bring one's chin up to (a horizontal bar, from which one is hanging by the hands), by bending the elbows.
    2. to raise (oneself) to this position.
  2. to raise or hold to the chin, as a violin.
  3. Archaic. to talk to; chatter with.
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verb (used without object), chinned, chin·ning.
  1. Gymnastics. to chin oneself.
  2. Slang. to talk; chatter: We sat up all night chinning about our college days.
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Idioms
  1. keep one's chin up, to maintain a cheerful disposition in spite of difficulties, disappointments, etc.Also chin up.
  2. take it on the chin, Informal.
    1. to suffer defeat; fail completely.
    2. to endure suffering or punishment.
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Origin of chin

before 1000; Middle English; Old English cin(n); cognate with Dutch kin, German Kinn chin, Old Norse kinn, Gothic kinnus cheek, Latin gena, Greek génus chin, gnáthos jaw (see genial2, -gnathous), Sanskrit hanus jaw
Related formschin·less, adjectiveun·der·chin, noun

Chin

or Jin

[jin]
noun
  1. Also Tsin. any of three dynasties that ruled in China, a.d. 265–316 (the Western Chin), a.d. 317–420 (the Eastern Chin), and a.d. 936–46 (the Later Chin).
  2. a dynasty that ruled in China 1115–1234.
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Chin.

or Chin.

  1. China.
  2. Chinese.
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ch'in

[chin; Chinese cheen]
noun
  1. a Chinese zither consisting of an oblong, slightly curved wooden box over which are stretched strings that are stopped with one hand and plucked with the other.
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Origin of ch'in

< Chinese (Wade-Giles) ch'in2, (Pinyin) qín

Ch'in

[chin; Chinese cheen]
noun
  1. a dynasty in ancient China, 221–206 b.c., marked by the emergence of a unified empire and the construction of much of the Great Wall of China.
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Also Qin.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

pointjawbuttonmandiblementumjawbone

Examples from the Web for chin

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • He has been up to the chin for the last twelvemonth and more.

  • He found Austin sitting on the chair by his desk, resting his chin on his elbow.

    Viviette

    William J. Locke

  • Yet there was a set of the mouth and a prominence of the chin which relieved him of any trace of effeminacy.

    The White Company

    Arthur Conan Doyle

  • His hand came under my chin as his custom was in giving orders.

    The Trail Book

    Mary Austin

  • The edge of the ice-cake had taken Tiakens under the chin and he was unconscious.

    The Trail Book

    Mary Austin

British Dictionary definitions for chin

chin

noun
  1. the protruding part of the lower jaw
  2. the front part of the face below the lipsRelated adjective: genial
  3. keep one's chin up to keep cheerful under difficult circumstancesSometimes shortened to: chin up!
  4. take it on the chin informal to face squarely up to a defeat, adversity, etc
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verb chins, chinning or chinned
  1. gymnastics to raise one's chin to (a horizontal bar, etc) when hanging by the arms
  2. (tr) informal to punch or hit (someone) on the chin
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Word Origin

Old English cinn; related to Old Norse kinn, Old High German kinni, Latin gena cheek, Old Irish gin mouth, Sanskrit hanu

Chin.

abbreviation for
  1. China
  2. Chinese
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for chin

n.

Old English cin, cinn "chin" (but in some compounds suggesting an older, broader sense of "jawbone"); a general Germanic word (cf. Old Saxon and Old High German kinni; Old Norse kinn; German Kinn "chin;" Gothic kinnus "cheek"), from PIE root *genu- "chin, jawbone" (cf. Sanskrit hanuh, Avestan zanu- "chin;" Armenian cnawt "jawbone, cheek;" Lithuanian žándas "jawbone;" Greek genus "lower jaw," geneion "chin;" Old Irish gin "mouth," Welsh gen "jawbone, chin").

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v.

1590s, "to press (affectionately) chin to chin," from chin (n.). Meaning "to bring to the chin" (of a fiddle) is from 1869. Slang meaning "talk, gossip" is from 1883, American English. Related: Chinned; chinning. Athletic sense of "raise one's chin over" (a raised bar, for exercise) is from 1880s.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
chin in Medicine

chin

(chĭn)
n.
  1. The prominence formed by the anterior projection of the lower jaw.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.

Idioms and Phrases with chin

chin

see keep one's chin up; lead with one's chin; take it on the chin.

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The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.