: a metal tool with a sharpened edge at one end used to chip, carve, or cut into a solid material (such as wood, stone, or metal)
chiseled or chiselled; chiseling or chiselling
ˈchi-zə-liŋ 
ˈchiz-liŋ
1
: to cut or work with or as if with a chisel
2
: to employ shrewd or unfair practices on in order to obtain one's end
also
: to obtain by such practices
chisel a job
1
: to work with or as if with a chisel
2
a
: to employ shrewd or unfair practices
b
: to thrust oneself : intrude
chisel in on a racket
Synonyms
Verb
Examples of chisel in a Sentence
Verb
He chiseled off a corner of the block.
Letters were chiseled into a wall.
Recent Examples on the Web
Brian Dillon, Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2024
Horowitz’s knock is the scrape of the chisel on your tombstone.
—Tad Friend, The New Yorker, 21 Oct. 2024
Jon Waterman, Outside Online, 22 Oct. 2024
If more depth and detail were chiseled into each man’s story, the history would hit as hard as the music.
—Karen D'souza, The Mercury News, 20 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for chisel 
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Noun
It will be transformed into a fresh new home, as will the neighboring chapel.
, which has amassed over 200,000 views on TikTok, shows the suspicious door that was once underneath the bath, with Mandy using a chisel and a hammer to pry it open.
—Brian Dillon, Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2024
Horowitz’s knock is the scrape of the chisel on your tombstone.
—Tad Friend, The New Yorker, 21 Oct. 2024
Verb
Shards of caribou bones and antlers lie on the tundra as ghostly business cards of a bygone migration, greened with mold, and minutely chiseled and mined for calcium by tiny vole teeth.
—Jon Waterman, Outside Online, 22 Oct. 2024
If more depth and detail were chiseled into each man’s story, the history would hit as hard as the music.
—Karen D'souza, The Mercury News, 20 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for chisel
Dictionary Entries Near chisel
Cite this Entry
“Chisel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chisel. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
chisel
1 of 2 noun
chis·el
ˈchiz-əl
: a metal tool with a cutting edge at the end of a blade used to shape or chip away a solid material (as stone, wood, or metal)
chisel
2 of 2 verb
chiseled or chiselled; chiseling or chiselling
ˈchiz-(ə-)liŋ
1
: to cut or work with or as if with a chisel
2
: to use unfair or dishonest methods
chiseler
noun
ˈchiz-(ə-)lər
Medical Definition
chisel
noun
chis·el
ˈchiz-əl
: a metal tool with a cutting edge at the end of a blade
especially
: one used in dentistry (as for cutting or shaping enamel)
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