chute

1 of 2

noun

ˈshüt 

variants or less commonly shute

1

a

: 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

2 of 2

verb

chuted; chuting

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.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Traverse to your left off the top, and the cliffs, chutes, and glades of Sentinel Bowl get the heart pumping. —Drew Zieff, Outside, 21 Nov. 2025

The sorting facility has a processing capacity of 2,000 pieces per hour for packages up to 50 kilograms, with 18 sorting chutes, 11 truck docks and 18 bag and box sorting conveyors. —Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 14 Nov. 2025

Verb

Plus, the exit chute from the NYC Marathon is notoriously long, requiring nearly another mile of walking. —Kristen Geil, Outside, 27 Oct. 2025

Secure lid on food processor and remove center piece of food chute to allow steam to escape. —Elizabeth Mervosh, Southern Living, 4 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

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

First Known Use

Noun

1805, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1884, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Phrases Containing chute

• out of the chute

Rhymes for chute

• beaut
• boot
• bruit
• brut
• brute
• coot
• cute
• flute
• fruit
• hoot
• jute
• loot

Kids Definition

chute

noun

variants also shute

ˈshüt

1

: an inclined plane, sloping channel, or passage down or through which things may pass

a coal chute

a mail chute

2

: parachute entry 1 sense 1