chunk

noun

\ ˈchəŋk

Definition of chunk

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : a short thick piece or lump (as of wood or coal)

2 : a large noteworthy quantity or part bet a sizable chunk of money on the race

3 : a strong thickset horse usually smaller than a draft horse

4 psychology : a unit of information retained in the memory and easily recalled The process of memorizing may be simply the formation of chunks, or groups of items that go together, until there are few enough chunks so that we can recall all the items.— Marilyn Sternglass A chunk represents a recoding of information. For example, the sequence 149217761941 would, for most of us, be a snap to remember. Almost automatically we'd recode the 12 digits into three chunks, 1492, 1776, 1941, all key dates in US history.— Robert Kanigel

chunk

verb

chunked; chunking; chunks

Definition of chunk (Entry 2 of 2)

intransitive verb

: to make a dull plunging or explosive sound the rhythmic chunking of thrown quoits— John Updike

transitive verb

1 : to mishit (a golf ball or shot) by striking the ground behind the ball

2 psychology : to organize (separate units of information) into a single large unit that is retained in the memory and easily recalled To recall a 10-digit telephone number, for instance, a person could chunk the digits into three groups: the area code (such as 021), then a three-digit chunk (639) and a four-digit chunk (4345).— Jonathan K. Foster

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Examples of chunk in a Sentence

Noun

She cut the fruit into large chunks. She spends a good chunk of her day on the phone. He devoted a large chunk of time to the project.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The on bit causes the chip to allot data in a larger chunk of memory than is needed. — Dan Goodin, Ars Technica, "Bluetooth bugs bite millions of Wi-Fi APs from Cisco, Meraki, and Aruba," 1 Nov. 2018 Smith, who has played forward for a large chunk of the season, was shifted back to defense after Kreider returned to the lineup. — Scott Charles, The Seattle Times, "Vesey scores go-ahead goal in 3rd, Rangers top Blues 4-2," 29 Mar. 2019 In fact, Yakuza 6 adds an extra layer of drama to the experience, putting Kiryu in charge of a young child for large chunks of the game. — Andrew Webster, The Verge, "The 15 best video games of 2018," 17 Dec. 2018 All of which means Netflix could lose a large chunk of its content. — Rani Molla, Recode, "Here’s what happens when the big media companies take their content off Netflix," 5 Dec. 2018 As DERs and their aggregations grow more numerous and larger, the risk arises that large chunks of the system will receive dueling instructions. — David Roberts, Vox, "Clean energy technologies threaten to overwhelm the grid. Here’s how it can adapt.," 30 Nov. 2018 For single-family rental units, half of landlords only own one property, while another large chunk owns between two and 10 properties. — Jeff Andrews, Curbed, "Online property management tools are moving the landlord-tenant relationship to the internet," 7 Nov. 2018 Shirley spends a large chunk of the second episode crying, as does Luke. — Christopher Rosa, Glamour, "Netflix's The Haunting of Hill House Is Basically a Scary This Is Us," 16 Oct. 2018 The organization might use a large chunk of your donation to pay salaries for the program staff. — Nina Bahadur, SELF, "How to Make Sure Your Charitable Giving Is Going to the Right Place," 22 Aug. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Clearly flustered, Spieth then chunked his third shot from the drop area into the water again. — Daniel Rapaport, SI.com, "Best Masters Memories From the Past 20 Years: No. 5 - Spieth's Implosion at 12," 31 Mar. 2018 One particular motif has Camille driving around town, chunking the same Led Zeppelin tape into her car stereo. — James Poniewozik, New York Times, "‘Sharp Objects,’ a Mesmerizing Southern Thriller, Cuts Slow but Deep," 5 July 2018 But the software can chunk them together in various ways to make possible letters. — Sam Kean, The Atlantic, "Artificial Intelligence Is Unlocking the Vatican's Secret Archives," 30 Apr. 2018 The tree chunks Answer Man has seen have mostly been on telecommunications lines, which Jamerson said Pepco’s crews don’t touch. — John Kelly, Washington Post, "Ever noticed chunks of trees on utility pole wires? What’s up with that?," 2 July 2018 Cruise boats take day trips to some of Southcentral Alaska's biggest and brightest glaciers, which send chunks the size of cars into the water with dramatic splashes. — Josh Niva, Anchorage Daily News, "Getting your outdoor adventure fix in Southcentral Alaska," 2 May 2018 Top those with the protein (could be chunked or whole filet). — Chris Morocco, Bon Appetit, "Ponzu Roasted Salmon for Two," 19 Mar. 2018 The skewers of pork belly were another beer cuisine winner, the tender chunks glazed in a sweet dark reduction of the colonial-theme spruce ale. — Craig Laban, Philly.com, "Yards brewery is better, not just bigger, with move and ambitious new taproom," 23 Mar. 2018 But the conditions were deteriorating as snow that had warmed and melted during the day began to freeze into chunks the size of small hailstones. — Elliott D. Woods, Outside Online, "How Mike Foote Set an Obscure 24-Hour Skiing Record," 20 Mar. 2018

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