chin

chin — noun

1. the hard, slightly pointed front part of your face that sticks out below your mo

1.nounB1
Definition

the hard, slightly pointed front part of your face that sticks out below your mouth, forming the bottom edge of your jaw

Example

Theo rested his chin on his hand while thinking about the question.

collocation: rest one's chin on something

A small cut on Priya's chin had healed quickly after the fall.

collocation: cut/grazed on the chin

Common collocations
  • on one's chin
  • under one's chin
  • rub one's chin
  • tilt one's chin
  • chin strap
  • chin length
Synonyms
  • jaw

    broader meaning — the whole upper or lower bone structure of the mouth

  • mandible

    formal, technical term for the lower jaw bone, used mainly in anatomy and medicine

Usage Note

Countable; frequently used with possessive determiners (my chin, his chin) and in expressions describing head position (chin up, chin down, chin on one's hand).

Common Mistakes

She kissed him on the chin.
She kissed him on the cheek.
In English, a friendly kiss is typically on the cheek, not the chin.
He broke his chin in the accident.
He broke his jaw in the accident.
The jaw is the whole bone structure; the chin is only the front tip.
Idioms

keep your chin up

idiom

an informal expression used to encourage someone to stay cheerful and hopeful when facing a difficult situation

Theo had failed the driving test, but his dad told him to keep his chin up and try again.

Even after losing her job, Priya kept her chin up and started looking for new opportunities.

take something on the chin

idiom

to accept a difficult or unpleasant situation bravely without complaining; also, to be badly damaged or affected by something

The small shop took the economic downturn on the chin and managed to stay open.

Ravi took the criticism on the chin and worked to improve.

(keep your) chin up

idiom

A phrase used to encourage someone to stay positive during a hard time.

Keep your chin up, Maya; better days are coming soon.

Chin up, Tom! You did your best in the race.

chuck somebody under the chin

idiom

To gently touch someone under their chin as a friendly or affectionate gesture.

Grandma chucked little Sara under the chin and smiled.

Diego chucked his baby brother under the chin playfully.

chin — verb

Word family

  • chin-up
    nounC1
  • chinned
    adjectiveC2
  • chinless
    adjectiveC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

The chin is the small, pointed front part of the lower jaw — the part you can feel just below your mouth. The jaw is a much broader term: it refers to either the upper bone (maxilla) or the lower bone (mandible) that holds your teeth and forms the shape of your mouth area. When people say 'He has a strong jaw,' they usually mean the whole lower part of the face, including the chin and the sides. The mandible is the technical, anatomical name for the lower jaw bone — you would mainly hear this term from a dentist or doctor. For example: 'Priya rested her chin on her hand' (specific front point), 'The punch broke his jaw' (the whole bone structure), and 'The X-ray showed a fracture in the mandible' (medical context).

chin ↗jaw ↗mandible

Common collocations

Nouns

  • chin strap
  • chin rest
  • chin hair
  • chin line
  • chin length

Phrases

  • chin up
  • chin down
  • up to one's chin
  • take it on the chin

Prepositions

  • on one's chin
  • under one's chin
  • above one's chin
  • to the chin

Etymology

Proto-Indo-EuropeanProto-GermanicOld EnglishMiddle EnglishEnglish

The word 'chin' comes from Old English 'cin,' meaning 'chin' or 'jaw.' This goes back to the Proto-Germanic word *kinnuz, which itself came from the ancient Proto-Indo-European root *genu-, meaning 'jaw' or 'cheekbone.' Related words in other languages include Latin 'gena' (cheek) and Greek 'genys' (jaw). Over many centuries, the spelling changed from 'cin' in Old English to 'chin' in Middle English and Modern English, while the meaning narrowed to focus on the front tip of the lower jaw rather than the whole jaw area.