chump

¹ American  

[chuhmp] / tʃʌmp /

noun

1. Informal. a stupid person; dolt.

   Don't be a chump—she's kidding you along.

2. a short, thick piece of wood.

3. the thick, blunt end of anything.

4. Slang. the head.

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idioms

1. off one's chump, crazy.

chump ² American  

[chuhmp] / tʃʌmp /

verb (used with or without object)

1. to bite or chew; munch.

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chump ¹ British  

/ tʃʌmp /

noun

1. informal a stupid person

2. a thick heavy block of wood

3. 1. the thick blunt end of anything, esp of a piece of meat

   2. ( as modifier )

      a chump chop

4. slang the head (esp in the phrase off one's chump )

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chump ² British  

/ tʃʌmp /

verb

1. a less common word for chomp

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Other Word Forms

• chumpish adjective
• chumpishness noun

Etymology

Origin of chump¹

1695–1705; perhaps blend of chunk ¹ and lump ¹

Origin of chump²

First recorded in 1850–55; variant of champ ¹

Explanation

A chump is a sucker or a fool — someone who is very gullible. If a con artist cheats you out of money, you may end up feeling like a chump. Chump is a very informal word for someone who falls for every trick and scheme, or who believes everything you tell them. If you get an email from an African prince asking for your bank account information so he can give you a lot of money, and you respond excitedly, ready to collect the cash, you're a chump. This meaning of chump first appeared in the 1880s — earlier, the word meant "short, thick piece of wood."

Example Sentences

That’s not chump change — and it could require pulling back on discretionary spending such as dining out or travel, or redirecting any future raises, bonuses or tax refunds toward your retirement fund.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 7, 2026

But everyone surely found out immediately after the fact, making her look like a total chump for having just given a sweeping address as the supposed head of homeland security.

From Slate • Mar. 5, 2026

Of course, $75 million is chump change for Amazon, which makes hundreds of billion dollars in revenue a year from both its online sales and Amazon Web Services cloud unit.

From Barron's • Jan. 29, 2026

"I’m the chump who thought social media could change the world," he told his audience at the Digital Futures Institute.

From BBC • Sep. 13, 2024

“Hey, I’m not some chump babysitter. I told them all to go to bed, and they did. That’s it. Get off my bed and go to sleep.”

From "Okay for Now" by Gary D. Schmidt