chum
1 Americannoun
-
a close or intimate companion.
boyhood chums.
-
Older Use. a roommate, as at college.
verb (used without object)
-
to associate closely.
-
Older Use. to share a room or rooms with another, especially in a dormitory at a college or prep school.
noun
-
cut or ground bait dumped into the water to attract fish to the area where one is fishing.
-
fish refuse or scraps discarded by a cannery.
verb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
-
to dump chum into (a body of water) so as to attract fish.
-
to lure (fish) with chum.
They chummed the fish with hamburger.
noun
noun
verb
-
to be or become an intimate friend (of)
-
(tr) to accompany
I'll chum you home
noun
noun
Etymology
Origin of chum1
First recorded in 1675–85; of uncertain origin
Origin of chum2
An Americanism dating back to 1855–60; of uncertain origin
Explanation
A chum is a friend or a pal. You and your best chums might spend the weekend camping together. The informal word chum is more common in Britain than the US, but you can still talk about your school chums or the new chum you made on a Caribbean cruise. Another kind of chum couldn't be more different from a buddy: it's chopped up fish parts used as bait on a fishing boat. This meaning comes from the Scottish chum, "food," while the first definition was Oxford University slang for a roommate or "chamber fellow."
Vocabulary lists containing chum
"Diary of a Wimpy Kid" by Jeff Kinney
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Shout
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Primates
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
The local government has proposed an old tactic to keep high-paying guests at the luxury resort from becoming chum: Putting a shark net adjacent to the beach.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 31, 2026
When reporting out his story, I contacted Stern, the filmmaker and old prep school chum who made The Preppy Murder.
From Slate ● Oct. 13, 2025
Chum - To join someone as a companion, as in "I'll chum you along".
From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2025
In 2022, 80% fewer king salmon returned to the Yukon River than the 30-year average and 90% fewer chum salmon returned to western Alaska.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 3, 2024
Watch the skittish fish watching me, watching the chum, trying to decide what to do, eat it or run away.
From "The Young Man and the Sea" by Rodman Philbrick
The waters have been chummed and the sharks are beginning to circle.
From Salon ● Aug. 1, 2025
I don’t think it’s overly prudish to wonder just where the line of decency is as audience bloodlust continues to get chummed.
From The Guardian ● Feb. 10, 2017
The IOC’s endorsement this time around has chummed the waters with controversy.
From Slate ● Aug. 3, 2016
More recently John Hamm and South Park's Matt Stone strolled in, and last year Noel Gallagher, Morrissey and a latte-sipping Russell Brand chummed up for a photo here.
From BBC ● Dec. 17, 2014
The people I’d always chummed around with would stop speaking to you if they so much as suspected you’d ever gone poo behind a bush.
From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
"Things were just chumming along pretty good," he said, selling cattle for $240 per hundredweight - but that's dropped to $225.
From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026
Nowadays, streamers like Netflix do it as a matter of chumming their content streams and expanding the shelf life of a show's viewer engagement.
From Salon ● Jul. 19, 2024
Court Whelan, chief sustainability officer with Natural Habitat Adventures, an eco-tour operator, said the pendulum is also swinging against chumming waters to attract marine animals, which he describes as “unnatural interference.”
From Washington Post ● Aug. 18, 2022
It is unlikely two of the SEC’s superstar coaches will be chumming around Destin, Florida, together.
From Seattle Times ● May 19, 2022
Two kids appeared at Percy’s side, the same ones Annabeth had seen him chumming around with earlier.
From "The Mark of Athena" by Rick Riordan
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.
