chafe

to irritate: the starched collar will chafe his neck; annoy; abrade; to heat by rubbing

Not to be confused with:

chaff – husks of grain; worthless matter: like chaff in the wind

chafe

(chāf)

v. chafed, chaf·ing, chafes

v.tr.

1. To wear away or irritate by rubbing or friction: The collar chafed my neck.

2. To annoy; vex: "It chafed him no end to be under obligation to her" (Carson McCullers).

3. To warm by rubbing, as with the hands.

v.intr.

1. To cause irritation by rubbing or friction: The high collar chafed against my neck.

2. To become worn or sore from rubbing or friction: His skin chafed where the cast had been.

3. To feel irritated or impatient: They chafed at the delay. The reporters chafed under the new restrictions.

1. Warmth, wear, or soreness produced by friction.

2. Annoyance; vexation.

[Middle English chafen, from Old French chaufer, to warm, from Vulgar Latin *calefāre, alteration of Latin calefacere : calēre, to be warm; see kelə- in Indo-European roots + facere, to make; see dhē- in Indo-European roots.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

chafe

(tʃeɪf)

1. to make or become sore or worn by rubbing

2. (tr) to warm (the hands, etc) by rubbing

3. to irritate or be irritated or impatient: he was chafed because he was not allowed out.

4. (intr; often foll by on, against, etc) to cause friction; rub

5. chafe at the bit See champ¹³

a soreness or irritation caused by friction

[C14: from Old French chaufer to warm, ultimately from Latin calefacere, from calēre to be warm + facere to make]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

chafe

(tʃeɪf)

v. chafed, chaf•ing,
n. v.t.

1. to wear away by rubbing; abrade.

2. to make sore by rubbing.

3. to irritate; annoy.

4. to warm by rubbing: to chafe cold hands.

v.i.

5. to rub with frictional force: The horse chafed against his stall.

6. to become annoyed: He chafed at their remarks.

7. irritation; annoyance.

8. heat, wear, or soreness caused by rubbing.

[1275–1325; Middle English chaufen to heat, rub, chafe < Middle French chaufer < Vulgar Latin *calfāre, for Latin calefacere to heat]

chafe

, chaff - To chafe means to rub until sore or worn; to chaff means to tease good-naturedly.

chafe

Past participle: chafed
Gerund: chafing

Imperative
chafe
chafe

Present
I chafe
you chafe
he/she/it chafes
we chafe
you chafe
they chafe

Preterite
I chafed
you chafed
he/she/it chafed
we chafed
you chafed
they chafed

Present Continuous
I am chafing
you are chafing
he/she/it is chafing
we are chafing
you are chafing
they are chafing

Present Perfect
I have chafed
you have chafed
he/she/it has chafed
we have chafed
you have chafed
they have chafed

Past Continuous
I was chafing
you were chafing
he/she/it was chafing
we were chafing
you were chafing
they were chafing

Past Perfect
I had chafed
you had chafed
he/she/it had chafed
we had chafed
you had chafed
they had chafed

Future
I will chafe
you will chafe
he/she/it will chafe
we will chafe
you will chafe
they will chafe

Future Perfect
I will have chafed
you will have chafed
he/she/it will have chafed
we will have chafed
you will have chafed
they will have chafed

Future Continuous
I will be chafing
you will be chafing
he/she/it will be chafing
we will be chafing
you will be chafing
they will be chafing

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been chafing
you have been chafing
he/she/it has been chafing
we have been chafing
you have been chafing
they have been chafing

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been chafing
you will have been chafing
he/she/it will have been chafing
we will have been chafing
you will have been chafing
they will have been chafing

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been chafing
you had been chafing
he/she/it had been chafing
we had been chafing
you had been chafing
they had been chafing

Conditional
I would chafe
you would chafe
he/she/it would chafe
we would chafe
you would chafe
they would chafe

Past Conditional
I would have chafed
you would have chafed
he/she/it would have chafed
we would have chafed
you would have chafed
they would have chafed

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun	1.	chafe - soreness and warmth caused by friction; "he had a nasty chafe on his knee" soreness, tenderness, rawness - a pain that is felt (as when the area is touched); "the best results are generally obtained by inserting the needle into the point of maximum tenderness"; "after taking a cold, rawness of the larynx and trachea come on"
	2.	chafe - anger produced by some annoying irritation vexation, annoyance anger, ire, choler - a strong emotion; a feeling that is oriented toward some real or supposed grievance temper, irritation, pique - a sudden outburst of anger; "his temper sparked like damp firewood" frustration - a feeling of annoyance at being hindered or criticized; "her constant complaints were the main source of his frustration" aggravation, exasperation - an exasperated feeling of annoyance harassment, torment - a feeling of intense annoyance caused by being tormented; "so great was his harassment that he wanted to destroy his tormentors" displeasure - the feeling of being displeased or annoyed or dissatisfied with someone or something
Verb	1.	chafe - become or make sore by or as if by rubbing gall, fret irritate - excite to an abnormal condition, or chafe or inflame; "Aspirin irritates my stomach"
	2.	chafe - feel extreme irritation or anger; "He was chafing at her suggestion that he stay at home while she went on a vacation" feel, experience - undergo an emotional sensation or be in a particular state of mind; "She felt resentful"; "He felt regret" annoy, devil, gravel, irritate, nark, rile, vex, nettle, rag, bother, chafe, get at, get to - cause annoyance in; disturb, especially by minor irritations; "Mosquitoes buzzing in my ear really bothers me"; "It irritates me that she never closes the door after she leaves"
	3.	chafe - cause annoyance in; disturb, especially by minor irritations; "Mosquitoes buzzing in my ear really bothers me"; "It irritates me that she never closes the door after she leaves" annoy, devil, gravel, irritate, nark, rile, vex, nettle, rag, bother, get at, get to get under one's skin, get - irritate; "Her childish behavior really get to me"; "His lying really gets me" eat into, rankle, grate, fret - gnaw into; make resentful or angry; "The injustice rankled her"; "his resentment festered" chafe - feel extreme irritation or anger; "He was chafing at her suggestion that he stay at home while she went on a vacation" peeve - cause to be annoyed, irritated, or resentful ruffle - trouble or vex; "ruffle somebody's composure" fret - cause annoyance in beset, chevvy, chevy, chivvy, chivy, harass, harry, hassle, molest, plague, provoke - annoy continually or chronically; "He is known to harry his staff when he is overworked"; "This man harasses his female co-workers" antagonize, antagonise - provoke the hostility of; "Don't antagonize your boss" displease - give displeasure to
	4.	chafe - tear or wear off the skin or make sore by abrading; "This leash chafes the dog's neck" excoriate abrade, abrase, corrade, rub down, rub off - wear away
	5.	chafe - cause friction; "my sweater scratches" scratch, rub, fray, fret adjoin, contact, touch, meet - be in direct physical contact with; make contact; "The two buildings touch"; "Their hands touched"; "The wire must not contact the metal cover"; "The surfaces contact at this point"
	6.	chafe - warm by rubbing, as with the hands warm - make warm or warmer; "The blanket will warm you"

chafe

verb

2. be annoyed, rage, fume, be angry, fret, be offended, be irritated, be incensed, be impatient, be exasperated, be inflamed, be ruffled, be vexed, be narked (Brit., Austral., & N.Z. slang) He chafed at having to take orders from someone else.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

chafe

verb

1. To make (the skin) raw by or as if by friction:

2. To trouble the nerves or peace of mind of, especially by repeated vexations:

aggravate, annoy, bother, bug, disturb, exasperate, fret, gall, get, irk, irritate, nettle, peeve, provoke, put out, rile, ruffle, vex.

Idioms: get in one's hair, get on one's nerves, get under one's skin.

3. To worry over trifles:

Translations

يَثورُ، يَغْضَبُيَسْتَدْفِئ بِواسِطَة حَكِّ اليَدَيْنيَقْرَحُ بالحَكِّ

být nervózníodřítpodrážděnýrozedříttřít

gnavegnideharmesirritere

felháborodik

núasæra meî núningiverîa óòolinmóîur, pirrast

atitrintinekantrautinusitrintinutrinti

berzētnoberzt jēlusasildīt berzējotskaisties

rozčuľovať sa

aşındırmakısıtmak için ovuşturmakovarak ısıtmaksabırsızlanmak

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

chafe

[ˈtʃeɪf]

vt (= rub against) [+ skin, thigh, hand, groin] → frotter contre (= rub so as to warm) → frotter

vi (fig) (= be annoyed) to chafe against → se rebiffer contre
to chafe at sth (= restriction, compulsion) → s'irriter de qch

chafe

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

chafe

(tʃeif) verb

1. to make warm by rubbing with the hands.

2. to make or become sore by rubbing. These tight shoes chafe my feet.

3. to become impatient. Everyone's chafing at the delay.