chip
noun
\ ˈchip
\
\
plural chips
Definition of chip
(Entry 1 of 2)
1a
: a small usually thin and flat piece (as of wood or stone) cut, struck, or flaked off
b
: a small piece of food: such as
(1)
: a small, thin, crisp, usually salty piece of food typically prepared by frying, baking, or drying
banana chips
especially
: potato chip — see also corn chip
(2)
: french fry
(3)
: a small often cone-shaped bit of food often used for baking
chocolate chips
c
: a small card displaying a paint color or a range of paint colors available for purchase
fabric swatches and paint chips
2
: something small, worthless, or trivial
3a
: one of the counters used as a token for money in poker and other games
b
chips plural
: money
—used especially in the phrase in the chips The beginning was always characterized by careless haste in the expectation of landing in the chips,…— William Kittredge
c
: something valuable that can be used for advantage in negotiation or trade
a bargaining chip
4
: a piece of dried dung
—usually used in combination cow chip
5
: a flaw left after a chip has been broken off
6a
: integrated circuit
b
: a small wafer of semiconductor material that forms the base for an integrated circuit
8
: microarray
DNA chips
chip off the old block
chip on one's shoulder
: a child that resembles his or her parent
: a challenging or belligerent attitude
chip
verb
chipped;
chipping
Definition of chip (Entry 2 of 2)
1a
: to cut or hew with an edged tool
b(1)
: to cut or break (a small piece) from something
(2)
: to cut or break a fragment from
chip a tooth
(3)
: to cut into chips
chip a tree stump
3
: to hit (a return in tennis) with backspin
Keep scrolling for more
Synonyms for chip
Synonyms: Noun
flake, sliver, spall, splint, splinter
Visit the Thesaurus for More
Examples of chip in a Sentence
Noun
The cup has a chip in it. wood chips were spread over the ground between the plantsVerb
I bit into something hard and chipped my tooth. He fell and chipped a bone in his knee. The paint had chipped off. He chipped away the ice from the car's windshield. The sculptor chipped away bits of stone. The golfer chipped the ball onto the green. She chipped the soccer ball over the goalie's head. He chipped a pass to his teammate. The golfer chipped onto the green.
Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
But that doesn’t make the Alabama commit less of a blue-chip prospect. — al, "Inside Alabama and Auburn recruiting of The Southern 120 running backs," 27 Aug. 2019 The blue-chip index has had five declines of 2% or more this year; three of those have been this month. — Emily Barrett, Los Angeles Times, "Stocks drop as Trump trade war and tantrums undo Fed’s efforts," 23 Aug. 2019 Economists, business gurus and blue-chip CEOs like those who make up America’s Business Roundtable confirmed them in their view. — The Economist, "Big business is beginning to accept broader social responsibilities," 22 Aug. 2019 Those numbers have attracted blue-chip sponsors to the LCS such as Coca-Cola, American Express and Honda, among others. — Ashley Cullins, The Hollywood Reporter, "Rick Fox Clashes With Esports Venture Partners Over Tournament Slot Sale," 15 Aug. 2019 The Dow Jones Industrial Average had been up 311 points before the tweet -- meaning that within minutes of the tariff news the blue-chip index had plunged from a peak to a trough of more than 600 points. — Fox News, "US to withdraw from historic arms control treaty with Russia; Michelle Obama addresses calls to join 2020 race," 2 Aug. 2019 The blue-chip stock index closed at an all-time high of 3,026 points on Friday. — Anneken Tappe, CNN, "The S&P 500 could hit another record today," 29 July 2019 That effect was clear on Monday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index falling 1.27 percent, and the blue-chip CSI300 index ending 0.69 percent lower. — NBC News, "China's new tech-focused stock market soars in opening," 22 July 2019 The blue-chip caliber of the musical’s creative team has a lot to do with that. — Don Aucoin, BostonGlobe.com, "An enjoyable tale of transformation in North Shore Music Theatre’s ‘Freaky Friday’," 15 July 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
Since 1973, lawmakers have chipped away at Roe by introducing hundreds of state-level regulations. — The Economist, "What explains Donald Trump’s war on late-term abortions?," 22 Aug. 2019 Remedi chipped a pass over the backline to Franco Escobar, who immediately slotted a pass backward into the box for Emerson Hyndman to push home. — Julia Poe, Pro Soccer USA, "Orlando City falls 2-0 to Atlanta United in semifinals of U.S. Open Cup," 8 Aug. 2019 The extradition bill has given fresh momentum to Hong Kong’s pro-democracy opposition movement, awakening broader concerns that China is chipping away at the rights guaranteed to Hong Kong for 50 years. — Washington Post, "China backs Hong Kong chief, slams protesters for violence," 2 July 2019 Many fear the central government in Beijing is chipping away at those freedoms. — NBC News, "Hong Kong charges 44 protesters with rioting," 31 July 2019 The chipping house next door to the Cluff home inched sideways on its foundation. — Leah Sottile, Longreads, "Chapter One: A Quiet Man," 15 July 2019 The sugar bowl is missing, and the large platter is chipped, but every other piece is excellent. — Brenda Yenke, cleveland.com, "Clague House Museum & Milan’s Antiques Fest: Yenke Peddler antiques," 11 July 2019 Timbers captain Diego Valeri chipped a free kick into the box in the 14th minute that should have been cleared by NYCFC. — Jamie Goldberg, oregonlive.com, "Sebastian Blanco leads Portland Timbers to 1-0 win over New York City FC," 7 July 2019 But a few teams are chipping away at a key roadblock: getting stem cells of one species to thrive in the embryo of another. — Kelly Servick, Science | AAAS, "Embryo experiments take ‘baby steps’ toward growing human organs in livestock," 26 June 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'chip.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more