Make Your Point, Jr. > Words in ABC Order > chafe

Study the word CHAFE: (Source) If your hands are cold, and you quickly rub them together to warm them up, you're chafing your hands. Or if your whole body is cold, you might chafe your arms, or chafe your legs: quickly rub them to help them get warmer. (Source) And, if you need to keep a big plate of food nice and warm so that people can serve themselves, like at a party or a buffet, you might use a chafing dish. Chafing dishes keep food hot. No one wants cold eggs at the breakfast bar! (Source) Those are some times we chafe things on purpose. Most of the time, though, when things chafe us, it's not on purpose, and it hurts. (Source) If the wind chafes your cheeks, or if your shoes chafe your feet, or if your legs chafe each other as you jog—then, ouch! To chafe something is to rub against it, over and over, making it warm, and making it hurt or even bleed. We can also say that your skin chafes in the wind, that your heels chafe in your shoes: so, to chafe can also mean to get sore, raw, and red because something keeps rubbing against you. In the gif below, Kramer's jeans are too tight. They're chafing his legs. Ow! (Source) High heels look pretty, but oof, they can really chafe your feet. Look how chafed the backs of her ankles are. No, thanks! (Source) Now, let's get figurative! Much like you'd chafe against a strong wind, or chafe against a pair of pajamas that are too tight and scratchy, you can chafe against anything people do to you again and again and again that annoys you. In this sense, to chafe at something, or to chafe against or under something, is to get bothered and annoyed by it, as if keeps rubbing you the wrong way. (Source) If you're an active, vocal kid, and you've just got to wiggle and talk all the time, then you'll chafe against the rules of a strict teacher. The teacher wants you to be still and be quiet all the time. It's so hard! So you keep chafing against the rules, meaning you're annoyed and bothered by the rules again and again and again. Below, Selina (in red) chafes against this hug. Selina does not want to be hugged, so she's annoyed and bothered. She's chafing against her friend's affection. (Source) If your parent, coach, teacher, or boss keeps standing over you while you work, telling you what to do, and watching you as you do it, you would chafe. I mean, I would chafe. Would you? I'd be chafing under such scrutiny. I'd be chafing against such intense supervision. I'd be chafing against this person's control. (Source) Hopefully, whenever you're chafing against someone's behavior, instead of just making a face or huffing in annoyance, ugh—instead of just chafing—you'll ask them to stop. (Source)   Make a flash card: You can write your own definition and choose your own picture, or copy mine. Term Definition Picture chafe to hurt by rubbing again and again; or, to be annoyed by something, as if it's rubbing at you   Write your own sentence! You can use either of the two ideas I'll suggest, or you can invent your own. Include as much detail as you can! (Source)   Write a sentence with the word CHAFE: Remember: when something chafes you, it rubs your skin in the same place too much, making it hurt; and, when you chafe against or under something, you get annoyed by it. Idea 1: "When I wore (some tight or uncomfortable article of clothing, like a turtleneck sweater, a dress shirt, or a pair of wooden clogs), (it or they) chafed me so badly that I had to (do something)." Idea 2: "(At home, at school, at work, or at some other place), I chafe against the rules, especially the one that says I (can't do something, or must do something)." You can type in here. When you're done, copy and paste your sentence wherever you'd like it to go.