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chute

noun
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\ ˈshüt How to pronounce chute (audio) \
variants: or less commonly

Definition of chute

 (Entry 1 of 2)

1a : fall sense 6b
b : a quick descent (as in a river) : rapid
2 : an inclined plane, sloping channel, or passage down or through which things may pass : slide
3 : parachute
4 : spinnaker

chute

verb
chuted; chuting

Definition of chute (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

: to convey by a chute

intransitive verb

1 : to go in or as if in a chute
2 : to utilize a chute (as by passing ore down it)

Examples of chute in a Sentence

Noun She dropped the towels into the laundry chute. children sliding down a water chute The skiers came racing down the chute.
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Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Half the races are on the turf, and two will be run from the new chute. — John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, "Horse racing newsletter: Jon White previews the Lecomte," 15 Jan. 2021 The snow is removed in two stages, with an auger feeding the snow into an impeller, which sends snow through the chute. — Tim Johnson, chicagotribune.com, "With snow on its way, here are the best removal products for winter weather in Chicago," 28 Dec. 2020 Murdock, 31, activated the emergency chute to exit the plane. — Tyler Van Dyke, Washington Examiner, "Florida couple and their dog debark plane via emergency slide before takeoff," 22 Dec. 2020 When the flag waved, the Jeep pulled out of the chute and made the first turn smoothly. — Alex Davies, Wired, "The Autonomous-Car Chaos of the 2004 Darpa Grand Challenge," 6 Jan. 2021 His chute formed a shroud around his body, and his ejection seat sat some 50 yards above him on the hillside. — Sarah Scoles, Popular Science, "A CIA spyplane crashed outside Area 51 a half-century ago. This explorer found it.," 5 Jan. 2021 The Eagles are putting their rookie quarterback in a tough situation right out of the chute against the Saints and their (lately) tyrannical defense. — Luke Johnson, NOLA.com, "3 things to look for when the Saints take on the Eagles (and their rookie QB) in Philly," 12 Dec. 2020 It’s a shady stretch of stream, with a soft bend at the upper end, riffles that open to a series of ledges, and a wide, deep pool at the end of the rock chute. — Slaton L. White, Field & Stream, "F&S Classics: An Evening on the Water," 9 Dec. 2020 Dull’s creation inspired his neighbor, Doug Morse, to make his own simple candy chute from some PVC pipe and scrap wood. — oregonlive, "Candy chutes and mechanical hands: Halloween displays with distancing in mind," 28 Oct. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb As a result, when the pilot chutes deployed to pull out the mains, one of them was not properly connected. — William Harwood, CBS News, "Boeing identifies rigging problem with Starliner parachute," 7 Nov. 2019 The animal chutes blocked the escape as the oil and wax that had been used to waterproof the tent caught fire and turned the big top into a raging inferno. — Steven Goode, courant.com, "His mother died saving his life during the Hartford Circus Fire, but Jerry LeVasseur turned a catastrophe into a lifetime of opportunity," 6 July 2019 The clouds of jumpers, with round ‘chutes akin to those used by D-Day soldiers, were honoring the thousands of paratroopers who leapt into gunfire and death 75 years ago. — Washington Post, "‘Woo-hoo!’ At 97, D-Day veteran parachutes into Normandy," 6 June 2019

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

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First Known Use of chute

Noun

1805, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1884, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

History and Etymology for chute

Noun

French, from Old French, from cheoir to fall, from Latin cadere — more at chance

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Time Traveler for chute

Time Traveler

The first known use of chute was in 1805

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Statistics for chute

Last Updated

23 Jan 2021

Cite this Entry

“Chute.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chute. Accessed 27 Jan. 2021.

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More Definitions for chute

chute

noun
How to pronounce chute (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of chute

: a narrow tube or passage that things and people go down or through

See the full definition for chute in the English Language Learners Dictionary

chute

noun
\ ˈshüt \

Kids Definition of chute

1 : a tube or passage down or through which people slide or things are slid or dropped a laundry chute Children slid down the chute.
2 : parachute entry 1

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More from Merriam-Webster on chute

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for chute

Nglish: Translation of chute for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of chute for Arabic Speakers

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