Nearby Words
noun
Idioms1.
Usually, chops. the jaw.
2.
chops,
a.
the oral cavity; mouth.
b.
Slang. the embouchure or technique necessary to play a wind instrument.
c.
Slang. musical ability on any instrument, especially in playing jazz or rock; technical virtuosity.
d.
Slang. the music or musical part played by an instrumentalist, especially a solo passage.
3.
an entranceway, as into a body of water.
4.
Horology. either of two pieces clasping the end of the suspension spring of a pendulum.
5.
bust one's chops, Slang. to exert oneself.
6.
bust someone's chops, Slang. to annoy with nagging or criticism: Stop busting my chops—I'll get the job done.
7.
lick one's chops, to await with pleasure; anticipate; relish: He was already licking his chops over the expected inheritance.
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Lick one's chops
is always a great word to know.
So is flibbertigibbet. Does it mean:
| a chattering or flighty, light-headed person. |
| an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To lick one's chops
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
chop
"shift," O.E. ceapian "to bargain" (see cheap), here with a sense of "changing back and forth."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Slang Dictionary
chop definition
|
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases
lick one's chops
Also, lick one's lips. Anticipate with great pleasure. For example, The kids were licking their chops as Mother described the family vacation plans, or I couldn't help but lick my lips when she talked about the menu. Both expressions allude to anticipating a tasty morsel of food. The second is the older, dating from about 1500 and used interchangeably with lick one's fingers, now seldom heard. The first also served as 1930s jazz slang for warming up, chops meaning "the jaw or mouth" (a usage dating from the 1300s).
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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