chine1
[chahyn]
- a ravine formed in rock by the action of running water.
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Origin of chine1
before 900; Middle English; Old English cinu crevice, fissure; cognate with Middle Dutch kene; compare Old English cīnan to gape, crack open
chine2
[chahyn]
- the backbone or spine, especially of an animal.
- the whole or a piece of the backbone of an animal with adjoining parts, cut for cooking.
- a ridge or crest, as of land.
- Nautical.
- an angular intersection of the sides and bottom of a vessel.
- a longitudinal member running behind this.
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- (in butchering) to sever the backbone of.
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Origin of chine2
chine3
[chahyn]
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chiné
[shee-ney]
- noting or pertaining to a fabric having a variegated pattern produced by warp threads that have been dyed, printed, or painted before weaving.
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Origin of chiné
1850–55; < French, past participle of chiner, verbal derivative of Chine China
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
rim, hill, vertebrae, bone, ridge, shave, slice, rip, slash, carve, curtail, divide, corrugation, elevation, parapet, ruck, spine, backbone, pole, creaseExamples from the Web for chine
Historical Examples
A chine or saddle, from two hours and a half, to three hours.
Directions for Cookery, in its Various BranchesEliza Leslie
Take care also to cut out the pipe that runs along the chine of a loin of veal, the same as in beef, to hinder it from tainting.
Ristofalo bade him roll the barrel on its chine to the rear and stand it by the hydrant.
Dr. SevierGeorge W. Cable
Caius went back to the shore to get the boat that lay at the foot of the chine.
The MermaidLily Dougall
If you have a mind to feed there is a chine Of beef, well season'd.
chine1
- the backbone
- the backbone of an animal with adjoining meat, cut for cooking
- a ridge or crest of land
- (in some boats) a corner-like intersection where the bottom meets the side
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- (tr) to cut (meat) along or across the backbone
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Word Origin
C14: from Old French eschine, of Germanic origin; compare Old High German scina needle, shinbone; see shin 1
chine2
- another word for chime 2
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chine3
- Southern English dialect a deep fissure in the wall of a cliff
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Word Origin
Old English cīnan to crack
chiné
- textiles having a mottled pattern
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Word Origin
C19: from French chiner to make in the Chinese fashion, from Chine China
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 chine
adj.
"in Chinese fashion," French Chiné, past participle of chiner "to color in Chinese fashion," from Chine "China" (see China).
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper