Chisel

//ˈt͡ʃɪzəl// noun, verb, slang

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A cutting tool used to remove parts of stone, wood or metal by pushing or pounding the back when the sharp edge is against the material. It consists of a slim, oblong block of metal with a sharp wedge or bevel formed on one end and sometimes a handle at the other end; there are hand tool versions (the original type) and versions as bits for power tools.
  2. 2
    Gravel. uncountable, usually
  3. 3
    an edge tool with a flat steel blade with a cutting edge wordnet
  4. 4
    A part of any of various tools or devices that has an analogous purpose, cutting raw material or a workpiece during the process that the tool or device performs.
  5. 5
    Coarse flour; bran; the coarser part of bran or flour. plural-normally, uncountable, usually
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  1. 6
    A part of any of various tools or devices that has an analogous purpose, cutting raw material or a workpiece during the process that the tool or device performs.; A part of some ploughs, next to the ploughshare, that helps cut into the soil and deal with obstructions such as rocks, roots, and stems.

    "Holonyms: plough, plow < implement"

Verb
  1. 1
    To use a chisel. intransitive
  2. 2
    carve with a chisel wordnet
  3. 3
    To work something with a chisel. transitive

    "She chiselled a sculpture out of the block of wood."

  4. 4
    deprive somebody of something by deceit wordnet
  5. 5
    To barge in on (something); to intrude on (something). dated, transitive
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  1. 6
    engage in deceitful behavior; practice trickery or fraud wordnet
  2. 7
    To make small changes to (something), bit by bit, resulting in change over time. figuratively, transitive

    "Laws that protect the environment are being chiseled away."

  3. 8
    To beg or pressure somebody into giving up (something); to haggle excessively; to cheat; to obtain something from (someone) by cheating. ambitransitive, informal

    "He's managed to chisel a couple dollars from somewhere."

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English chisel, chesel, from Old Northern French chisel, cisel, from cisoir (with a change in suffix), from Late Latin cīsōrium (“cutting tool”), from Latin caedō (“cut”). Doublet of scissors.

Etymology 2

From Middle English chisel, chesel, from Old Northern French chisel, cisel, from cisoir (with a change in suffix), from Late Latin cīsōrium (“cutting tool”), from Latin caedō (“cut”). Doublet of scissors.

Etymology 3

From Middle English chisel, chesil, from Old English ċeosol, ċeosel, ċysel, ċisel, ċisil (“gravel, sand”), from Proto-West Germanic *kesul (“small stone, pebble”). See also chessom.

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