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Synonyms

chops

British  
/ tʃɒps /

plural noun

  1. the jaws or cheeks; jowls

  2. the mouth

  3. slang

    1. music embouchure

    2. jazz skill

  4. informal to anticipate with pleasure

"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
chops Idioms  

  1. see break one's ass (chops); lick one's chops.

Etymology

Origin of chops

C16: of uncertain origin

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Here’s how I fell in love with pork chops:

From Salon • Apr. 10, 2026

The pork chops of my childhood were thin, boneless, and oven-bound — salted and peppered just before they went in, cooked through without much ceremony.

From Salon • Apr. 10, 2026

The stage puts a spotlight on smack-talk skills, functioning like a gym where wrestlers work out their character muscles, polish their submission holds and perfect their trash-talking chops in front of a panel of judges.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 18, 2026

Go to the Marché des Enfants Rouges in the 3rd arrondissement in Paris for fresh oysters and a cheese plate, or to the Marché des Carmes in Toulouse for some lamb chops and fried scallops.

From Barron's • Mar. 8, 2026

Like well-run factories, cells are thrifty; part of the cellular machinery chops up and reuses anything that is floating around inside, including bits of the cell and foreign invaders such as viruses.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

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