Chalk

/tʃɔːk/

nounBeginner🔥Very CommonMaterial
2 meanings2 questions

Definitions

2 meanings
1

A soft, white or colored limestone, used for writing or drawing.

/tʃɔːk/

nounneutralBeginner
Material

A soft, white, powdery substance.

She used a piece of chalk to draw a hopscotch grid on the pavement.

💡 Simply: Chalk is like a special kind of rock that's easy to crumble. Teachers use it to write on blackboards, and artists use it to make colorful pictures. It's soft and powdery!

👶 For kids: It's like a white rock you can draw with!

More Examples

2

The chalk dust filled the air as the teacher wrote on the board.

How It's Used

Education

"The teacher wrote on the blackboard with chalk."

Art

"The artist used chalk to create a pastel drawing."

2

To rub or mark with chalk.

/tʃɔːk/

verbneutralBeginner
Action

To mark or draw with chalk.

The children chalked pictures of flowers on the pavement.

💡 Simply: To chalk something means to draw or write on a surface using chalk, like writing your name on the sidewalk!

👶 For kids: To draw with chalk.

More Examples

2

He chalked out a plan on the whiteboard.

How It's Used

Art

"He chalked a message on the sidewalk."

Tip:Imagine chalking a message on a wall.

From Middle English *chalke, from Old English *cealc, from Proto-Germanic *kalką, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱolk-.

Chalk has been used for writing and drawing for centuries, with evidence dating back to ancient times.

Memory tip

Think of a teacher using chalk on a blackboard.

Word Origin

Original meaning

"limestone"

Base: chalk
piece of chalkchalk dustchalk line

Common misspellings

chalckchalke

Usage

20%Spoken
80%Written