chuck

1 of 5

verb (1)

ˈchək 

chucked; chucking; chucks

: cluck

chuck

2 of 5

noun (1)

—used as an endearment

chuck

3 of 5

verb (2)

chucked; chucking; chucks

transitive verb

1

: pat, tap

2

a

: toss, throw

b

: discard

chucked his old shirt

chuck it out with the trash

c

: dismiss, oust

—used especially with out

was chucked out of office

3

: give up

chucked his job

chuck

4 of 5

noun (2)

1

: a pat or nudge under the chin

2

: an abrupt movement or toss

chuck

5 of 5

noun (3)

1

: a cut of beef that includes most of the neck, the parts about the shoulder blade, and those about the first three ribs see beef illustration

2

chiefly Western US : food

3

: an attachment for holding a workpiece or tool in a machine (such as a drill or lathe)

Synonyms

Verb (2)

• cashier
• cast (off)
• deep-six
• discard
• ditch
• dump
• eighty-six
• 86
• exorcise
• exorcize
• fling (off or away)
• jettison
• junk
• lay by
• lose
• pitch
• reject
• scrap
• shed
• shuck (off)
• slough (off)
• sluff (off)
• throw away
• throw out
• toss
• unload

Noun (3)

• bread
• chow
• comestibles
• eatables
• eats
• edibles
• fare
• food
• foodstuffs
• grub
• meat
• provender
• provisions
• table
• tucker [chiefly Australian]
• viands
• victuals
• vittles

Examples of chuck in a Sentence

Verb (2)

after the power outage we reluctantly chucked everything that had been sitting in the fridge

I swear, I have half a mind to chuck this job and become a hermit!

chucked a wad of paper at his friend's back

Noun (3)

after a long day, the cowboys lined up for some chuck

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Bebe Rexha was seriously hurt in New York City when a fan chucked a cell phone at her face (he was arrested), and Harry Styles was hit by objects multiple times while touring Europe last summer. —Ilana Kaplan, People.com, 2 Dec. 2024

When that’s chucked in a blender with his own penchant for spiky-savvy verbosity, the results fizz and pop. —Sara Holdren, Vulture, 10 Nov. 2024

Noun

When used with Presta valves, the chuck on that hose securely screws onto the valve, but is removed simply by pulling it off. —New Atlas, 24 Oct. 2024

It’s got enough power to handle tasks that need extra torque, and the half-inch chuck will accept basically every drill bit size. —Boutayna Chokrane, WIRED, 3 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English chukken, of imitative origin

Noun (1)

perhaps from chuck chicken

Verb (2)

origin unknown

Noun (3)

English dialect chuck lump

First Known Use

Verb (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (1)

1595, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1611, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (3)

1723, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing chuck

• chuck it (all) in
• chuck out
• chuck wagon
• chuck-will's-widow

Kids Definition

chuck

1 of 3 verb

ˈchək 

1

: to give a pat or a tap to

chucked the child under the chin

2

: toss sense 2

let's chuck the ball around

chuck

2 of 3 noun

1

: a pat or nudge under the chin

2

: an easy throw : toss

chuck

3 of 3 noun

1

: a portion of a side of dressed beef including most of the neck and the parts around the shoulder blade and the first three ribs

2

: a device for holding work or a tool in a machine

Etymology

Verb

origin unknown

Noun

English dialect chuck "lump"