chamber

1 of 3

noun

cham·​ber ˈchām-bər 

1

: room

especially : bedroom

2

: a natural or artificial enclosed space or cavity

3

a

: a hall for the meetings of a deliberative, legislative, or judicial body

the senate chamber

b

: a room where a judge transacts business

—usually used in plural

c

: the reception room of a person of rank or authority

4

a

: a legislative or judicial body

especially : either of the houses of a bicameral legislature

b

: a voluntary board or council

5

a

: the part of the bore of a gun that holds the charge

b

: a compartment in the cartridge cylinder of a revolver

chambered

ˈchām-bərd 

adjective

chamber

2 of 3

verb

chambered; chambering ˈchām-b(ə-)riŋ 

transitive verb

1

: to place in or as if in a chamber : house

2

: to serve as a chamber for

especially : to accommodate in the chamber of a firearm

chamber

3 of 3

adjective

: being, relating to, or performing chamber music

Synonyms

Noun

• apartment
• cell
• closet
• room

Verb

• accommodate
• bestow
• billet
• bivouac
• board
• bunk
• camp
• domicile
• encamp
• harbor
• house
• lodge
• put up
• quarter
• roof
• room
• shelter
• take in

Examples of chamber in a Sentence

Noun

If the batteries are not properly installed in the chamber of the remote control, it won't work.

There are four chambers in the human heart.

We waited for the senator outside the Senate chamber.

The U.S. legislature is separated into two chambers: the Senate and the House of Representatives.

Verb

chambered the lost hikers in the barn until the next morning

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Both chambers are scheduled to elect their leadership teams in closed-door meetings. —Elizabeth Robinson, NBC News, 13 Nov. 2024

As vote totals stood Friday morning, House Republicans will hold 20 seats in the 65-member chamber. —Seth Klamann, The Denver Post, 8 Nov. 2024

Verb

The 10th Judicial District has 45 judges, including Amy Brosnahan, who is chambered in Isanti County and not related to Helen Brosnahan, and roughly 365 staff, overseeing nearly 120,000 cases per year. —Nick Ferraro, Twin Cities, 30 Oct. 2024

Before that, in 1975 a member of the Manson Family cult tried to shoot President Gerald Ford at close range in Sacramento, California but failed to chamber a round into the gun. —Josh Meyer, USA TODAY, 14 July 2024

Adjective

And what sort of legislative horse trading will have to happen to make the always-complex inter-chamber politics between the House and Senate work? —Brian Amaral, BostonGlobe.com, 6 Apr. 2023

Brennan immediately dictated a note, and a terse exchange of letters on the afternoon of March 27, 1978, sent to the entire conference—all justices receiving a copy—may mark a low point in the history of intra-chamber correspondence at the Supreme Court. —J.c. Hallman, The New Republic, 11 June 2020

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English chambre, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin camera, from Latin, arched roof, from Greek kamara vault

First Known Use

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1568, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1706, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing chamber

• anterior chamber
• bubble chamber
• chamber music
• chamber of commerce
• chamber of horrors
• chamber orchestra
• chamber pot
• cloud chamber
• combustion chamber
• decompression chamber
• echo chamber
• gas chamber
• ionization chamber
• posterior chamber
• precombustion chamber
• spark chamber
• star-chamber

Kids Definition

chamber

1 of 2 noun

cham·​ber ˈchām-bər 

1

: a room in a house and especially a bedroom

2

: an enclosed space or compartment

the chamber of a pistol

the chambers of the heart

3

a

: a meeting hall of a government body (as an assembly)

b

: a room where a judge conducts business out of court

—usually used in plural

4

a

: a group of people organized into a lawmaking body

the lower chamber of the legislature

b

: a board or council of volunteers (as businesspeople)

chambered

-bərd 

adjective

chamber

2 of 2 verb

chambered; chambering -b(ə-)riŋ 

: to place or hold in or as if in a chamber

Etymology

Noun

Middle English chambre "chamber," from early French chambre (same meaning), from Latin camera "room, chamber" — related to camera

Medical Definition

chamber

noun

cham·​ber ˈchām-bər 

: an enclosed space within the body of an animal see anterior chamber, posterior chamber, pulp chamber, vitreous chamber

Legal Definition

chamber

noun

cham·​ber

1

: a judge's office

specifically : the private office where a judge carries on business other than court sessions (as conferences or signing papers)

—usually used in pl.

four other judges met in my chambers

—R. H. Bork

a hearing in chambers

2

a

: a hall for the meetings of a deliberative, legislative, or judicial body or assembly

to run back into the House chamber

—Tip O'Neill

b

: a legislative or judicial body : house