perpetual check

American  

noun

Chess.

1. a continuing series of checks resulting in a drawn game because they cannot be halted or evaded without resulting in checkmate or a serious disadvantage.

2. the situation in which this occurs.

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perpetual check British  

noun

1. chess a consecutive series of checks that the checked player cannot avoid, leading to a drawn game

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Etymology

Origin of perpetual check

First recorded in 1810–20

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

perpetual check

Qxg6, and White has a perpetual check in hand and a little threat of 21.

From Washington Times ● Oct. 18, 2023

Rg3+ Kh6 and White, down a boatload of material, has nothing better than perpetual check.

From Washington Times ● Feb. 21, 2023

Black misses chances to complicate matters — 43…Qe1!? would have served up both mating perpetual check threats — and one last finesse gives White the point.

From Washington Times ● Sep. 14, 2021

Qh5 Rxf5, the perpetual check threat disappears and the Black pieces overwhelm White’s queen like, in Browne’s words, “three hungry hyenas vs. one old lion.”

From Washington Times ● Jul. 1, 2015

In the following position, for instance, White on the move can draw the game by giving a perpetual check on e8 and h5.

From Chess and Checkers : the Way to Mastership by Lasker, Edward