chess

1 of 2

noun (1)

ˈches 

: a game for 2 players each of whom moves 16 pieces according to fixed rules across a checkerboard and tries to checkmate the opponent's king

Illustration of chess

• chessboard with chess pieces arranged as at the beginning of a game

chess

2 of 2

noun (2)

1

: a weedy annual European bromegrass (Bromus secalinus) widely naturalized in North America as a weed especially in grain

2

: any of several weedy bromegrasses related to chess

Examples of chess in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Who are resisting a world where our dignity and safety is a pawn moved around a chess board by those who only see us as a bargaining tool. —Brea Baker, refinery29.com, 26 Feb. 2025

Frame Shift Expert chess players need only glance at the board to remember the positions of pieces, though for most people the arrangement would be vexing to reconstruct. —Quanta Magazine, 21 Feb. 2025

The signing gives the Canucks lots of flexibility to move the chess pieces around. —Harman Dayal, The Athletic, 21 Feb. 2025

Chess Masters – Primetime BBC competition format in which amateur players will battle it out across a series of rapid chess games. —Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 18 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English chesse, ches, esches, borrowed from Anglo-French escheks, eschez "game of chess" — more at check entry 2

Noun (2)

origin unknown

First Known Use

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

1736, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing chess

• chess pie

Rhymes for chess

• bless
• cress
• dress
• es
• ess
• esse
• fess
• guess
• jess
• less
• lesse
• mess

Kids Definition

chess

noun

ˈches

: a game for two players each of whom plays with 16 pieces on a checkerboard

Etymology

Noun

Middle English ches "game of chess," from early French eschés (same meaning), literally, "checks," from eschec "check" — related to check, checker