chamois Hear it!

chamois definition

cham·ois (s̸ham′ē)

noun pl. chamois cham′·ois (-ēz)

  1. a small goat antelope (Rupicapra rupicapra) of the mountains of Europe and the Caucasus, having straight horns with the tips bent backward
  2. also sp. chammy cham′my
    1. a soft leather made from its skin or from the skin of sheep, deer, goats, etc.
    2. a piece of this leather, used as a polishing cloth

Etymology: Fr < LL camox < a native Alpine word of IE orig.; akin to Gr kemas, young deer: see hind

adjective

  1. made of chamois
  2. yellowish-brown

transitive verb chamoised cham′·oised (s̸ham′ēd), chamoising cham′·ois·ing (s̸ham′ē iŋ)

to polish with a chamois skin

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

chamois Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • include: His experienced eye will also spot the hiding places of local wildlife including chamois, deer and playful marmots.

Adjective modifier

  • well-wrung: Use only tepid water and a well-wrung chamois or a micro-fibre cloth to clean mirrors.

Modifies a noun

  • leather: Men with chamois leathers took the opportunity to clean parts of the cars, much to the delight of the crowd.

Noun used with modifier

  • antibacterial: Padding is taken care of by the contoured antibacterial chamois designed to absorb sweat and reduce bacterial build up on longer rides.
chamois usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

Link to this page:

Cite this page:

MLA Style

"chamois." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/chamois>

APA Style

chamois. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/chamois

Comments:

Please or Register to post a comment