chicane

1 of 2

verb

chi·​cane shi-ˈkān 

chi-

chicaned; chicaning

intransitive verb

: to use chicanery

a wretch he had taught to lie and chicane

—George Meredith

transitive verb

: trick, cheat

chicane

2 of 2

noun

1

: chicanery

2

a

: an obstacle on a racecourse

b

: a series of tight turns in opposite directions in an otherwise straight stretch of a road-racing course

3

: the absence of trumps in a hand of cards

Did you know?

There's no mystery about the origins of chicane. It's from the Middle French verb chicaner, meaning "to quibble" or "to prevent justice," and print evidence of its use as a verb in English dates to around 1672. The noun form of chicane was first used in print in 1686. In addition to referring to "trickery," the noun chicane is used to refer to an obstacle or a series of tight turns in opposite directions on a racecourse. In card games, chicane refers to the absence of trumps in a hand of cards. One curiosity of this word set is that the word that would appear to be a derivative of chicane-chicanery (a synonym of chicane in its "trickery" sense)-actually appeared in English over 60 years before chicane.

Synonyms

Verb

• cheat

Noun

• chicanery
• deception
• treachery
• trickery
• subterfuge
• gamesmanship
• skulduggery
• deceptiveness
• skullduggery
• artfulness
• jugglery
• stealth
• cunning
• secrecy
• jiggery-pokery

Examples of chicane in a Sentence

Verb

a lawyer who is so notorious for chicaning that the guilty invariably seek his services

Noun

most get-rich-quick schemes involve more than a smidgen of chicane

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Norris initially overtook Piastri on the hairpin, but Piastri reclaimed the position on the long straight and into the final chicane. —Sahil Kapur, NBC news, 16 June 2025

The second portion of the chicane was widened, allowing different racing lines to be taken. —Madeline Coleman, The Athletic, 22 Aug. 2024

Circuit Gilles Villeneuve almost guarantees high drama: tight chicanes, long straights and the infamous Wall of Champions. —Jenny Catlin, New York Times, 13 June 2025

Yet it is considered to be one of the toughest with its heavy-braking chicanes, hairpins, barriers and of course the infamous ‘Wall of Champions’ located right at the exit of the final chicane. —Yara Elshebiny, Forbes.com, 12 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Verb

borrowed from French chicaner "to dispute by means of quibbles, raise issues with minor points of law in order to complicate a judicial suit," going back to Middle French, "to sue, prosecute," perhaps a blend of the Gallo-Romance expressive base čik- expressing diminutiveness (as in Old Occitan chic "small," French chiquet "small piece") and ricaner "to snicker, laugh affectedly or contemptuously," going back to Middle French, "to bray," probably alteration (by association with rire "to laugh") of Old French (Norman) recaner, rechaner "to bray," from re- re- + -caner, derivative of cane "tooth," going back to Old Low Franconian *kinni- "cheek," going back to Germanic *kinnu- — more at chin entry 1

Noun

borrowed from French, "quibble on a minor point of law brought up to complicate a judicial case," noun derivative of chicaner "to raise issues with minor points of law" — more at chicane entry 1

First Known Use

Verb

circa 1671, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Noun

1683, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for chicane

• abstain
• airplane
• alkane
• arcane
• arraign
• attain
• backplane
• betaine
• biplane
• blockchain
• butane
• campaign

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