chockablock

or chock-a-block

[chok-uh-blok]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR chockablock ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

extremely full; crowded; jammed: a room chockablock with furniture and plants.

Nautical. having the blocks drawn close together, as when the tackle is hauled to the utmost.

adverb

in a crowded manner: books piled chockablock on the narrow shelf.

Origin of chockablock

cf. chock close (up to), apparently as back formation from chock-full

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for chock-a-block

brimming, overcrowded, overflowing, packed, stuffed, chock-a-block, crammed, jam-packed, bulging

Examples from the Web for chock-a-block

Historical Examples of chock-a-block

A company came on board the Scourge, and they filled us chock-a-block.
Ned Myers
James Fenimore Cooper
I wish I could ask you to stay, but we are chock-a-block with cousins and aunts.
The Independence of Claire
Mrs. George de Horne Vaizey
The big Ravine and all the small nullahs are chock-a-block with corpses.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I
Ian Hamilton
"Then, if it is true we'll find the Cavarale chock-a-block with British prisoners," said Dacres.
The Dreadnought of the Air
Percy F. Westerman
The place was chock-a-block with rough-looking men, either looking on or playing the games.
The Trail of '98
Robert W. Service

British Dictionary definitions for chock-a-block

chock-a-block

adjective, adverb

filled to capacity; in a crammed state

nautical with the blocks brought close together, as when a tackle is pulled as tight as possible

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 chock-a-block

adj.

nautical, said of two blocks of tackle run so closely they touch; from chock + block (n.).