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chisel

[ chiz-uhl ]
/ ˈtʃɪz əl /
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See synonyms for: chisel / chiseled / chiselled on Thesaurus.com

noun
verb (used with object), chis·eled, chis·el·ing or (especially British) chis·elled, chis·el·ling.
verb (used without object), chis·eled, chis·el·ing or (especially British) chis·elled, chis·el·ling.
to work with a chisel.
to trick; cheat.
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Origin of chisel

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, from Anglo-French, variant of Old French cisel, from unattested Vulgar Latin cīsellus, diminutive of unattested cīsus, for Latin caesus, past participle of caedere “to cut,” with -ī- generalized from prefixed derivatives; cf. excide

OTHER WORDS FROM chisel

chis·el-like, chis·el·like, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use chisel in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for chisel

chisel
/ (ˈtʃɪzəl) /

noun
  1. a hand tool for working wood, consisting of a flat steel blade with a cutting edge attached to a handle of wood, plastic, etc. It is either struck with a mallet or used by hand
  2. a similar tool without a handle for working stone or metal
verb -els, -elling or -elled or US -els, -eling or -eled
to carve (wood, stone, metal, etc) or form (an engraving, statue, etc) with or as with a chisel
slang to cheat or obtain by cheating

Word Origin for chisel

C14: via Old French, from Vulgar Latin cīsellus (unattested), from Latin caesus cut, from caedere to cut
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
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