chink

¹ American  

[chingk] / tʃɪŋk /

noun

1. a crack, cleft, or fissure.

   a chink in a wall.

   Synonyms:

   cut, rent, breach

2. a narrow opening.

   a chink between two buildings.

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verb (used with object)

1. to fill up chinks in.

chink ² American  

[chingk] / tʃɪŋk /

verb (used with or without object)

1. to make, or cause to make, a short, sharp, ringing sound, as of coins or glasses striking together.

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noun

1. a chinking sound.

   the chink of ice in a glass.

2. Slang. coin or ready cash.

Chink ³ American  

[chingk] / tʃɪŋk /

noun

(sometimes lowercase)

1. a contemptuous term used to refer to a Chinese person.

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chink ¹ British  

/ tʃɪŋk /

noun

1. a small narrow opening, such as a fissure or crack

2. a small but fatal weakness

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verb

1. (tr) to fill up or make cracks in

chink ² British  

/ tʃɪŋk /

verb

1. to make or cause to make a light ringing sound, as by the striking of glasses or coins

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noun

1. such a sound

Chink ³ British  

/ ˈtʃɪŋkɪ, tʃɪŋk /

noun

1. an old-fashioned and highly derogatory term for Chinese

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Other Word Forms

• chinky adjective

Etymology

Origin of chink¹

1350–1400; Middle English; perhaps chine ¹ + -k suffix ( see -ock)

Origin of chink²

First recorded in 1565–75; imitative

Origin of Chink³

1900–05; earlier Chinkie apparently alteration of China, Chinese by association with chink ¹ (from the stereotypical Western image of Chinese as narrow-eyed); see -ie

Explanation

A chink is a very narrow opening or crack. A chink in your bedroom curtains might let enough early morning sunlight in that you'll wake up before your alarm goes off. Use the word chink to describe the slightest gap between slats in a blind or crevice between two rocks on a cliff. Sometimes the light that shows through this space is also called a chink; "Just a chink of light shone beneath the shade on the airplane window." Chink comes from the Old English cinu, "fissure," and the related cinan, "to crack or split."

Example Sentences

It was a night in which teams in the powerful Trinity League showed a chink in their armor.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 23, 2025

In over two decades spent inside Israeli prisons, Sinwar reportedly learned fluent Hebrew and studied Israeli society, and he identified a chink in the armor of his militarily superior adversary.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 5, 2024

This lack of response seems to be a chink in the body's armor that Mtb exploits to such devastating effect.

From Science Daily • Jan. 18, 2024

“I looked over at Becky, who, throughout years of these unwarranted attacks, hadn’t shown even the slightest chink in her armor,” said Heather Jackson in a May 15 op-ed for Harper’s Bazaar.

From Washington Times • Jul. 12, 2023

Inside the house, every crack and chink had been plugged with rags to keep the wind out.

From "When I Was Puerto Rican" by Esmeralda Santiago

Related Words

• crevice
• fissure