chink

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /tʃɪŋk/ UK /tʃɪŋk/ See IPA manual

Minimal pairs

Sounds like sink /tʃ/ vs /s/

noun verb

Meanings

1

noun
a narrow crack or opening; a sharp ringing sound

Light slid through a chink in the shutters.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a narrow crack or opening;... crack crevice fissure gap slit cleft aperture cranny

Word family

Related forms chinechinky

Etymology

In the 'crack' sense, probably from Middle English chine ('a fissure'), from Old English cinu ('cleft'), with an added -k; in the 'ringing sound' sense, of imitative origin.

cinu Old English

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Topics

Describing Qualities

# chink

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun, verb
**IPA (US):** tʃɪŋk
**IPA (UK):** tʃɪŋk

## Meanings
1. a narrow crack or opening; a sharp ringing sound

## Examples
- Light slid through a chink in the shutters.

## Synonyms
- crack
- crevice
- fissure
- gap
- slit
- cleft
- aperture
- cranny

## Related Forms
- chine
- chinky

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: cinu

## Etymology
In the 'crack' sense, probably from Middle English chine ('a fissure'), from Old English cinu ('cleft'), with an added -k; in the 'ringing sound' sense, of imitative origin.

## AI Etymology
Chink is traced as follows: In the 'crack' sense, probably from Middle English chine ('a fissure'), from Old English cinu ('cleft'), with an added -k; in the 'ringing sound' sense, of imitative origin. The historical trail runs through cinu in Old English. Its formation is sound-symbolic rather than a regular transparent compound, with the older form echoing the sound named in the history. Used as a noun and verb, chink now means "a narrow crack or opening; a sharp ringing sound", so the present definition can be read against the older forms and meanings. The same lexical family is also visible in related forms such as chine and chinky. The word is therefore part of the inherited Germanic layer of English, even where later usage has narrowed, broadened, or specialized the sense.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

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chink

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