chamber
Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
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[edit] English
[edit] Alternative forms
- chambre (obsolete)
[edit] Etymology
From French chambre, from Latin camera, from Ancient Greek καμάρα (kamara, “vaulted chamber”).
[edit] Pronunciation
[edit] Noun
chamber (plural chambers)
- A room, especially one used primarily for sleeping; bedroom, sleeping room.
- 1845, Edgar Allen Poe, The Raven,
- Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
- Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,
- While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
- As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
- 1845, Edgar Allen Poe, The Raven,
- An enclosed space. For example, a test chamber is typically a closable case where devices under test are placed.
- In a firearm, this is the portion of the weapon that holds the ammunition round immediately prior to (and during initiation of) its discharge.
- Dianne loaded a cartridge into the chamber of the rifle, then prepared to take aim at the target.
- One of the legislative bodies in a government where multiple such bodies exist, or a single such body in comparison to others.
- The resolution, which speedily passed the Senate, was unable to gain a majority in the lower chamber.
[edit] Translations
bedroom
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enclosed space
part of a firearm holding the round before firing
legislative body
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
Translations to be checked
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[edit] Related terms
- bubble chamber
- chamberlain
- chambermaid
- chamber music
- chamber of commerce
- chamber pot
- cloud chamber
- in chambers
- Wilson chamber
[edit] Verb
chamber (third-person singular simple present chambers, present participle chambering, simple past and past participle chambered)
- To enclose in a room.
- She had chambered herself in her room, and wouldn't come out.
- To place in a chamber, as a round of ammunition.
- The hunter fired at the geese and missed, then shrugged his shoulders and chambered another cartridge.
- To create or modify a gun to be a specific caliber.
- The rifle was originally chambered for 9MM, but had since been modified for a larger, wildcat caliber.
- In martial arts, to prepare an offensive, defensive, or counteroffensive action by drawing a limb or weapon to a position where it may be charged with kinetic energy.
- Bob chambered his fist for a blow, but Sheila, having studied her Agrippa, used Bruce Lee's one-inch punch to break his nose.
