chip

play

noun \ ˈchip \

Definition of chip

1 a :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 slice of food; especially :potato chip

(2) :french fry

(3) :a small often cone-shaped bit of food often used for baking

chocolate chips

2 :something small, worthless, or trivial

3 a :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

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

6 a :integrated circuit

b :a small wafer of semiconductor material that forms the base for an integrated circuit

7 :chip shot 1

8 :microarray

DNA chips

— chip off the old block

:a child that resembles his or her parent

— chip on one's shoulder

:a challenging or belligerent attitude

See chip defined for English-language learners

See chip defined for kids

Examples of chip in a Sentence

The cup has a chip in it.
wood chips were spread over the ground between the plants

Recent Examples of chip from the Web

Both races are chip timed and overall and age category winners will be announced after the race.

— michelle mullins, Naperville Sun, "This Week in Naperville," 29 Aug. 2017
Devon Dotson isn’t the only blue-chip basketball prospect in the Class of 2018 making an official recruiting trip to Kansas this weekend.

— gary bedore, kansascity, "No. 18-ranked prep player De Sousa arrives for KU visit Friday," 25 Aug. 2017
For those with special diets Several dishes are vegetarian-friendly, including chips and salsa.

— lauren delgado, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Reyes Mezcaleria spices up North Quarter," 18 Aug. 2017
After suffering a chip fracture in his sternum in his first practice with the Bills, Matthews might not play in the preseason but should be fine come September.

— profootballdoc, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Fantasy football: Wide receivers injury update," 18 Aug. 2017
Meaning, instead of chips and chocolate bars, out pops a basket of delicious seafood.

— sara tardiff, ELLE Decor, "There Is A Fresh Oyster Vending Machine In France," 11 Aug. 2017
Instead, North Korea's weapons seem to be a bargaining chip.

— adam taylor, Washington Post, "What we know about North Korea’s quest for nuclear weapons," 9 Aug. 2017
Kids 12 and under can get a free hot dog and chips during Family Fest.

— cincinnati enquirer, Cincinnati.com, "Hamilton County Roundup: Anderson Days, SharonFest and a famous yard sale," 21 July 2017
Strong demand for computer chips and other high tech products is helping drive the recovery.

— youkyung lee, The Seattle Times, "Bank of Korea raises South Korea’s growth outlook," 12 July 2017

These 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.

Origin and Etymology of chip

Middle English; akin to Old English -cippian

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

chip Synonyms

Synonyms

flake, sliver, spall, splint, splinter

Related Words

bit, disk (or disc), fragment, part, particle, portion, scrap, section, shard; flinders, shiver, smithereens; shred, tatter; clipping, paring, shave, shaving, snippet; leaf, sheet, slice

Near Antonyms

chunk, hunk, lump, slab

Other Food Terms

Reuben, calamari, chuck, curry, edamame, foie gras, hummus, leaven, nonpareil, peel

chip

verb

Definition of chip

chipped; chipping

transitive verb

1 a :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

2 British :chaff, banter

3 :to hit (a return in tennis) with backspin

intransitive verb

1 :to break off in small pieces

2 :to play a chip shot

See chip defined for English-language learners

Examples of chip in a Sentence

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 of chip from the Web

While incremental advancements are slowly chipping away at bot issues, Toyota might have a solution that could fix both at once.

— eric limer, Popular Mechanics, "Toyota Working on Electric Cars That Charge in Minutes for 2022," 25 July 2017
Not surprisingly, several major technology companies have taken notice: Samsung, Google, Facebook, and Intel all chipped in funding for this research.

— adrienne lafrance, The Atlantic, "The Technology That Will Make It Impossible for You to Believe What You See," 11 July 2017
Lowell, meanwhile, chipped away with a run in the fifth, but the real damage came in the sixth.

— randy mcroberts, The Aegis, "IronBirds see seven-game win streak snapped in 5-3 loss to Lowell," 6 July 2017
Then big boxes such as Home Depot and Best Buy chipped away at lucrative product niches.

— sarah halzack, miamiherald, "The big missteps that brought an American retail icon to the edge of collapse," 25 June 2017
Kentucky Country Day guard Solomon Mathis chipped in with 17 points for the East, while North Oldham forward Justin Rose had 13 points and Oldham County point guard Jackson Gibson had 10 points.

— nate bryan, The Courier-Journal, "West sweeps East at junior all-star basketball games Saturday," 18 June 2017
Dru made the field by shooting 67-69 at a sectional qualifier in Georgia, chipping in for eagle on the 36th hole and then winning a playoff to be the first alternate.

— teddy greenstein, chicagotribune.com, "A father-son Love story: Davis Love III caddying for son at U.S. Open," 13 June 2017
The review, which may be released late Monday, is designed to provide a road map for regulatory agencies to begin chipping away at strictures put in place after the 2008 market crash, a person familiar with the matter said.

— robert schmidt, Bloomberg.com, "Trump Administration to Call for Modest Changes to Banking Rules," 12 June 2017
This one made it three days before (minor) chipping occurred near the cuticles, but all in all lasted five days — a definite bargain at $4.99 a bottle.

— jessica prince erlich, The Cut, "7 Long-Lasting Polishes That Won’t Chip or Destroy Your Nails," 5 June 2017

Origin and Etymology of chip

Middle English chippen, from Old English -cippian (as in forcippian to cut off); akin to Old English cipp beam, Old High German chipfa stave

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

CHIP Defined for English Language Learners

chip

play

noun

Definition of chip for English Language Learners

: a small piece that has been broken off from something larger
: a place where a small piece of something has broken off
: a small piece of candy or chocolate used in baking

chip

verb

Definition of chip for English Language Learners

: to break off a small piece from (something)
: to break or come off in small pieces
: to break off (something) especially with a tool

CHIP Defined for Kids

chip

play

noun \ ˈchip \

Definition of chip for Students

1 :a small piece cut or broken off

wood chips

a chip of glass

2 :a thin crisp piece of food and especially potato

tortilla chips

3 :a small bit of candy used in baking

chocolate chips

4 :a flaw left after a small piece has been broken off

There's a chip in the rim of that cup.

5 :integrated circuit

6 :a small slice of silicon containing a number of electronic circuits (as for a computer)

chip

verb

Definition of chip for Students

chipped; chipping

1 :to cut or break a small piece from

I fell and chipped my tooth.

2 :to break off in small pieces

We chipped the ice from the windshield.

Medical Dictionary

chip

play

noun \ ˈchip \

medical Definition of chip

:microarray

When exposed to a sample of unknown DNA, the probes on the chip bind to their complementary strands, thereby reading the sequences in the sample.
—Jeff Wheelwright, Discover, April 2002