chops
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /t͡ʃɑps/
ipa: /t͡ʃɒps/
rhymes: -ɒps
Etymology: From the plural of chop (“jaw, side of a harbour”). The jazz slang sense “musical ability” is a reference to the use of the lips to blow instruments.
Senses: glosses: plural of chop
examples: text: […]who knows but ſome fine lady of St. James's pariſh might admit into her delicate mouth thoſe very cherries, which had been rolled and moiſtened between the filthy, and, perhaps, ulcerated chops of a St. Giles's huckſter[…]
ref: 1771, [Tobias Smollett], The Expedition of Humphry Clinker […], volume I, London: […] W. Johnston, […]; and B. Collins, […], →OCLC, page 174:
text: If we'd a had a second-hand crystal ball to look into, we’d have seen the lean and gripy times ready to smack us in our chops by the year the depression rolled around, when the big commercial outfits got complete control of the popular-music business.
ref: 1946, Milton “Mezz” Mezzrow, Bernard Wolfe, “Forgottenest Man in Town”, in Really the Blues, New York, N.Y.: Random House, book 2 (1923–1928: Chicago, Chicago), page 139:
related: word: chaps
glosses: Jaws, lips, mouth.
examples: text: Although the bass player had no experience playing in New Orleans, the crowd's enthusiastic response showed that he had the chops to make it in the very particular Crescent City jazz scene.
text: Recently, I have taken up the double bass again, but because time and neglect erode ability, calluses turn soft, and muscle memory fades, I need to woodshed (practice) to get back into shape and build up my chops.
ref: 1999 June, Al Stevens, “Jukebox: Covering the Basses”, in Dr. Dobb's Journal, volume 24, number 6, San Francisco, Calif.: Miller Freeman, Inc., →ISSN, page 115:
glosses: One's skill at musical interpretation and delivery; musical performance ability.
examples: text: Although he did not know all of the ins and outs of the newsroom, he had the writing chops to become a regular contributor.
text: ["]If you don't have a guy who gives you that, despite the greatest acting chops in the world, the show is not going to succeed," Gilligan adds.
ref: 2009 March 6, Alan Sepinwall, quoting Vince Gilligan, “Sepinwall on TV: Bryan Cranston talks 'Breaking Bad' season two”, in The Star-Ledger, archived from the original on 16 Nov 2011:
text: In Sean Hannity's interview with Herman Cain, the Fox News host asks, with his signature slow-pitch softball style, whether the former CEO has the necessary foreign policy chops to be president.
ref: 2011 October 27, Conor Friedersdorf, “A Dare for Herman Cain: Prove Your Foreign-Policy Chops”, in The Atlantic:
text: If you're a Python guru, you can look for ideas to apply your craft to penetration testing, or if you are a newbie Pythonist with some penetration testing chops, then this module serves as a perfect ending to your search for some hands-on experience in pentesting.
ref: 2016, Christopher Duffy et al., Python: Penetration Testing for Developers, Packt Publishing Ltd, →ISBN:
text: Former Governor and UN Ambassador Nikki Haley and Senator Tim Scott have governing chops and personal appeal, and they have been shrewd about keeping Trump at a distance without seeming to attack him, but they are relative newbies and unknown quantities in national politics—high-risk propositions against an incumbent.
ref: 2023 August 16, Jonathan Rauch, “Why Not Pence?”, in The Atlantic:
text: His portfolio expanded as he honed his SEO chops—he was assigned to the Ubisoft account to help launch an Assassin’s Creed title, for example, and he produced YouTube content for Telemundo during the 2018 World Cup.
ref: 2023 October 19, Brendan I. Koerner, “Watch This Guy Work, and You’ll Finally Understand the TikTok Era”, in Wired, →ISSN:
glosses: One's skill at any endeavor; ability, talent; competency.
topics: nautical
transport
glosses: The area where two tides meet and cause an irregular (choppy) sea.
topics: arts
hobbies
juggling
lifestyle
performing-arts
sports
glosses: A pattern that involves carrying the object with the hand over the next object before throwing it.
glosses: Food.
Derived terms: word: break one's chops
word: bust chops
word: bust one's chops
word: cheeky chops
word: chops and changes
word: chopsy
word: lick one's chops
word: nimble-chops
topics: juggling
performing-arts
arts
sports
hobbies
lifestyle
word: reverse chops
word: small chops