chaperone

noun chap·er·one \ ˈsha-pə-ˌrōn \

variants: or less commonly chaperon

|Updated on: 6 Aug 2018

Definition of chaperone

1 : a person (such as a matron) who for propriety (see propriety 4) accompanies one or more young unmarried women in public or in mixed company

2 : an older person who accompanies young people at a social gathering to ensure proper behavior; broadly : one delegated to ensure proper behavior

I was a chaperone on one of my son's class trips.

3 : any of a class of proteins (such as heat-shock proteins) that facilitate the proper folding of proteins by binding to and stabilizing unfolded or partially folded proteins — called also molecular chaperone

See chaperone defined for English-language learners

See chaperone defined for kids

Examples of chaperone in a Sentence

I was a chaperone on one of my son's school trips.

Recent Examples of chaperone from the Web

Casey Pearson, a spokesperson with Greeley-Evans Weld County School District 6, said the bus had 35 people on board, including 29 students and four chaperones.

— phil helsel /, NBC News, "Multiple injuries after school bus crashes in Colorado," 13 July 2018
This year, 38 students and nine chaperones made the trip to Mexico from June 5 to June 12.

— cheryl waity, chicagotribune.com, "'It really changed their perspective': East, West Leyden students travel out of country for service projects," 2 July 2018
The group traveling in Argentina included 10 high school students and the faculty chaperones, according to the school.

— jane wester, charlotteobserver, "Providence Day students, faculty injured in crash in Argentina," 18 June 2018
More than two dozen students and adult chaperones have been taken to Houston-area hospitals following a traffic collision involving two school buses carrying fifth-graders.

— Fox News, "Dozens of Houston-area students hospitalized after 2 school buses crash," 18 Apr. 2018
At least one person was killed and several others were injured early Tuesday morning when a charter bus full of high school students and chaperones plunged into a 50-foot ravine in Alabama.

— steve helling, PEOPLE.com, "One Dead, Many Injured When Bus Carrying High School Students Plunges into 50-Foot Alabama Ravine," 13 Mar. 2018
The group, accompanied by three chaperones, is also seeking cash donations for lodging and expenses during the trip.

— alison kuznitz, courant.com, "Headed For Mission Work In Haiti, Northwest Catholic High School Group Seeks Medical Supply Donations," 3 July 2018
Still, Lester says Coll and the parents and volunteers who came along to chaperone were always careful to protect the children, ensuring that their focus remained on having fun.

— amy crawford, Smithsonian, "Racism Kept Connecticut’s Beaches White Up Through the 1970s," 2 July 2018
What, then, is the actual point of having chaperones in the exam room?

— robin abcarian, latimes.com, "Who is protecting our young women from those who masquerade as caring physicians?," 17 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'chaperone.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of chaperone

French chaperon, literally, hood, from Medieval French, head covering, from chape

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1720

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

chaperone

verb

variants: or less commonly chaperon

Definition of chaperone

chaperoned; chaperoning

transitive verb

1 : escort

2 : to act as chaperone to or for

chaperone a dance

chaperoning teenagers

intransitive verb

: to act as a chaperone

Two parents chaperoned at the school dance.

—

chaperonage

play \-ˌrō-nij\ noun

See chaperone defined for English-language learners

Examples of chaperone in a Sentence

Two parents chaperoned the children.
My mom always chaperoned the school dances.

Recent Examples of chaperone from the Web

Tena’s older sister, who lives near Sacramento, would drive two-and-a-half hours south to Salinas to pick her up, take her to the meetings, then chaperone her home again—eight hours of driving each time.

— lauren smiley, The Atlantic, "The Future of AI Depends on High-School Girls," 23 May 2018
Through this program, volunteers can chaperone a trip and lead a small group of students through exhibits.

— shelbie lynn bostedt, RedEye Chicago, "Give back this week with Supplies for Dreams," 2 Aug. 2017
Being asked to chaperone a field trip that requires riding the school bus.

— tiffany blackstone, Redbook, "7 Times Parents Wish They Could Say, "LOL, Nope!"," 4 June 2015
Jackson walks to the front of the school where, some parents are checking in at the office to chaperone a field trip to the zoo.

— beth kassab, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Active shooter drills, pie-in-the-face all part of life as school resource officer," 16 Mar. 2018
Their parents, who are simply too overwhelmed and impoverished themselves, cannot chaperone them.

— Washington Post, "For Rohingya Muslim child refugees, too many losses to count," 21 Sep. 2017
Troop 939 leader Siobahn Hickey, of Lake Forest, will help chaperone the group of sixth- to 10th- graders.

— nathan percy, Orange County Register, "These Orange County kids say why they’re going to Trump’s inauguration," 19 Jan. 2017
Hughes told FP Santangelo, a 27-year-old outfielder, to watch after Brady and chaperone him for the day, because the Expos wanted to sign this guy.

— tim rohan, The MMQB, "That Time a 17-Year-Old Tom Brady Borrowed Ken Griffey Jr.’s Jersey," 10 July 2017
TMZ reports that the Toronto rapper flew in to chaperone his second cousin Jalaah Moore and her date to the dance at Fairley High School, making a stylish entrance by ordering them a white Rolls Royce.

— peter helman, Billboard, "Drake Crashed a Prom in Memphis," 15 May 2017

Origin and Etymology of chaperone

see ¹chaperone

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1796

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

See Words from the same year

chaperone Synonyms

CHAPERONE Defined for English Language Learners

chaperone

noun

Definition of chaperone for English Language Learners

: someone (such as a teacher or parent) who goes with children on a trip or to a school dance to make sure that the children behave properly
: a person in the past who went with a young unmarried woman to social events in order to make sure that the woman behaved properly

chaperone

verb

Definition of chaperone for English Language Learners

: to be a chaperone to or for (someone or something)

CHAPERONE Defined for Kids

chaperone

noun chap·er·one

variants: or chaperon \ˈsha-pə-ˌrōn\

Definition of chaperone for Students

: a person who goes with and is responsible for a group of young people

chaperone

verb

variants: or chaperon

Definition of chaperone for Students

chaperoned; chaperoning

: to go with and supervise a group of young people : act as a chaperone

Several parents chaperoned the school dance.

Medical Dictionary

chaperone

noun chap·er·one \ ˈshap-ə-ˌrōn \

variants: or chaperone protein

medical Definition of chaperone

: any of a class of proteins (such as heat shock proteins and chaperonins) that facilitate the proper folding of proteins by binding to and stabilizing unfolded or partially folded proteins

As the proteins are produced, molecules called chaperones fold them into the three-dimensional form they are supposed to take.
—Andres M. Lozano et al., Scientific American,, July 2005

— called also molecular chaperone