chaff

English

Etymology

Part or all of this entry has been imported from the 1913 edition of Webster’s Dictionary, which is now free of copyright and hence in the public domain. The imported definitions may be significantly out of date, and any more recent senses may be completely missing.

Old English ceaf; akin to West Frisian tsjêf, Dutch kaf, German Kaff.

Pronunciation

Noun

chaff (uncountable)

  1. The inedible parts of a grain-producing plant.
    To separate out the chaff, early cultures tossed baskets of grain into the air and let the wind blow away the lighter chaff.
  2. By extension, any excess or unwanted material, resource, or person; anything worthless.
    There are plenty of good websites on the subject, but take care to separate the wheat from the chaff.
  3. Loose material dropped from aircraft specifically to interfere with radar detection.

Derived terms

See also

Translations

inedible parts of grain plant
excess or unwanted material

Verb

chaff (third-person singular simple present chaffs, present participle chaffing, simple past and past participle chaffed)

  1. (intransitive) To use light, idle language by way of fun or ridicule; to banter.
  2. (transitive) To make fun of; to turn into ridicule by addressing in ironical or bantering language; to quiz.

Translations

to use idle language to ridicule
to make fun of
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Last modified on 20 May 2013, at 01:53