chamber

verb

chambered; chambering ˈchām-b(ə-)riŋ 

transitive verb

1

: to place in or as if in a chamber : house

2

: to serve as a chamber for

especially : to accommodate in the chamber of a firearm

Synonyms of chamber

• house
• room
• accommodate
• lodge

Examples of chamber in a Sentence

chambered the lost hikers in the barn until the next morning

Recent Examples on the Web

In a later portion of the video, sources said the person believed to be Clark can be seen reaching into the backseat of the vehicle and then shooting Vazquez, before chambering a second round and taking his own life. —Emily Shapiro, ABC News, 20 May 2026

The gun did not fire, prosecutors said, because no round was chambered. —Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 23 Mar. 2026

Another proposal clarifies what kind of firearms chambered for straight wall cartridges may be used during the alternative firearms season. —Bryan Hendricks, Arkansas Online, 22 Feb. 2026

You are instructed to load the magazine into the pistol, rack the slide and show the instructor that a round is chambered. —Stephanie Ogilvie, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1568, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing chamber

• anterior chamber
• bubble chamber
• chamber music
• chamber of commerce
• chamber of horrors
• chamber orchestra
• chamber pot
• cloud chamber
• combustion chamber
• decompression chamber
• echo chamber
• gas chamber
• ionization chamber
• posterior chamber
• precombustion chamber
• spark chamber
• star-chamber

Rhymes for chamber

• antechamber
• bedchamber

Kids Definition

chamber

1 of 2 noun

cham·​ber ˈchām-bər 

1

: a room in a house and especially a bedroom

2

: an enclosed space or compartment

the chamber of a pistol

the chambers of the heart

3

a

: a meeting hall of a government body (as an assembly)

b

: a room where a judge conducts business out of court

—usually used in plural

4

a

: a group of people organized into a lawmaking body

the lower chamber of the legislature

b

: a board or council of volunteers (as businesspeople)

chambered

-bərd 

adjective

chamber

2 of 2 verb

chambered; chambering -b(ə-)riŋ 

: to place or hold in or as if in a chamber

Etymology

Middle English chambre "chamber," from early French chambre (same meaning), from Latin camera "room, chamber" — related to camera

Medical Definition

chamber

noun

cham·​ber ˈchām-bər 

: an enclosed space within the body of an animal see anterior chamber, posterior chamber, pulp chamber, vitreous chamber

Legal Definition

chamber

noun

cham·​ber

1

: a judge's office

specifically : the private office where a judge carries on business other than court sessions (as conferences or signing papers)

—usually used in pl.

four other judges met in my chambers

—R. H. Bork

a hearing in chambers

2

a

: a hall for the meetings of a deliberative, legislative, or judicial body or assembly

to run back into the House chamber

—Tip O'Neill

b

: a legislative or judicial body : house