chalk C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities US /tʃɔk/ UK /tʃɔːk/ See IPA manual Minimal pairs Sounds like shock /tʃ/ vs /ʃ/ Meanings 1 noun a soft white limestone used for writing or marking The teacher scrawled the equation on the board in chalk. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · a soft white limestone used... limestonecrayon Word family Derived forms chalkychalkiness Related forms calciumcalcareous Etymology AI details From Old English cealc ('chalk, lime'), an early borrowing from Latin calx ('limestone, lime'), itself from Greek khalix ('pebble'). cealc Old English calx Latin View etymology graph -> Topics Describing Qualities External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # chalk **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /tʃɔk/ **IPA (UK):** /tʃɔːk/ ## Meanings 1. a soft white limestone used for writing or marking ## Examples - The teacher scrawled the equation on the board in chalk. ## Synonyms - limestone - crayon ## Derived Forms - chalky - chalkiness ## Related Forms - calcium - calcareous ## Roots and Affixes - Root: cealc - Root: calx ## Etymology From Old English cealc ('chalk, lime'), an early borrowing from Latin calx ('limestone, lime'), itself from Greek khalix ('pebble'). ## AI Etymology Chalk comes from Old English cealc ('chalk, lime'), an early borrowing from Latin calx ('limestone, lime'), itself from Greek khalix ('pebble'). The historical trail runs through cealc in Old English and calx in Latin. Used as a noun and verb, chalk now means "a soft white limestone used for writing or marking", so the present definition can be read against the older forms and meanings. The same lexical family is also visible in derived forms such as chalky and chalkiness and related forms such as calcium and calcareous. The result is a borrowed or transmitted form whose modern spelling carries a compact record of its route into English. ## Topics - Describing Qualities markdown