chalk

1 of 2

noun

1
a
: a soft white, gray, or buff limestone composed chiefly of the shells of foraminifers
b
: a prepared form of chalk or a material resembling chalk especially when used (as for writing on blackboards) as a crayon
2
a
: a mark made with chalk
b
British : a point scored in a game
chalky adjective

chalk

2 of 2

verb

chalked; chalking; chalks

transitive verb

1
: to write or draw with chalk
2
: to rub or mark with chalk
3
a
: to delineate roughly : sketch
b
: to set down or add up with or as if with chalk : record
usually used with up
chalk up the totals

intransitive verb

: to become chalky
the paint had begun to chalk

Examples of chalk in a Sentence

Noun The teacher handed her a piece of chalk and asked her to write the answer on the chalkboard. He put chalk marks on the stage to show the actors where they should stand. They drew pictures on the sidewalk with colored chalks. Verb She chalked a message on the side of the barn. He chalked the stage to show the actors where they should stand.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
The event also features chalk street artists, live music performances, international street cuisine and old-fashioned festival food. Joe Rassel, Orlando Sentinel, 19 Feb. 2025 Outside, leisurely tracking shots graze on the horizontal sprawl of wheat fields at various stages of cultivation and harvest, and billowing skies in shades of powdery springtime blue and misty, wintry chalk. Guy Lodge, Variety, 14 Feb. 2025
Verb
However, the Atlanta rapper chalked it up to creative wordplay. Angel Diaz, Billboard, 13 Feb. 2025 Bernhardt, who starts with spray paint on upright canvases, then puts them on the floor and adds watery acrylics, which give her work its drippy panache, chalks it up to plain coincidence, though of course there’s nothing plain about what either of them do. Nicole Phelps, Vogue, 5 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for chalk

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English chalk, schalke "chalk, lime," going back to Old English cealc, calc "limestone, chalk, lime," going back to West Germanic *kalka- (whence also Old Saxon & Middle Dutch calc "lime," Old High German kalc, chalch "lime, chalk"), borrowed from Latin calc-, calx "lime, limestone," perhaps borrowed from Greek chalik-, chálix "gravel, rubble (used as building material)," of uncertain origin

Note: The attribution of the Latin word to Greek is conventional, though the meanings are divergent, and the syncope in the Latin word is irregular. Perhaps both words were borrowed independently from a third language. Compare calculus.

Verb

derivative of chalk entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1580, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of chalk was before the 12th century

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Cite this Entry

“Chalk.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chalk. Accessed 27 Feb. 2025.

Kids Definition

chalk

1 of 2 noun
1
: a soft white, gray, or buff limestone made up mainly of the shells of tiny saltwater animals and especially foraminifers
2
: chalk or material like chalk especially when used as a crayon
chalky adjective

chalk

2 of 2 verb
1
: to rub, mark, write, or draw with chalk
2
a
: to outline roughly
chalk out a plan
b
: to record or add up with or as if with chalk
chalk up the totals
Etymology

Noun

Old English cealc "chalk," from Latin calc-, calx "lime" — related to calcium

Medical Definition

chalk

noun
: a soft white, gray, or buff limestone composed chiefly of the shells of foraminifers and sometimes used medicinally as a source of calcium carbonate

called also creta

see precipitated chalk, prepared chalk
chalky adjective

More from Merriam-Webster on chalk

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