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chain saw

1 American  

noun

  1. a power saw, usually portable, having teeth set on an endless chain.

chain-saw 2 American  
[cheyn-saw] / ˈtʃeɪnˌsɔ /
Or chainsaw

verb (used with object)

  1. to cut or cut down (lumber, a tree, etc.) with a chain saw.

verb (used without object)

  1. to use a chain saw.

chain saw British  

noun

  1. a motor-driven saw, usually portable, in which the cutting teeth form links in a continuous chain

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of chain saw1

An Americanism dating back to 1840–50

Origin of chain-saw2

First recorded in 1955–60

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Officials asked the public’s help to identify the vandal, who was wearing all black and riding around on a bike with a backpack and a duffel bag, which they believed held a chain saw.

From Los Angeles Times

“Tomás thinks he’s found a way past the roadblock. Do either of you know how to use a chain saw?”

From Literature

Probably crews with chain saws would have to come and cut through fallen logs before Dad could drive the car back into camp.

From Literature

Only in the past couple of years, Sansom explained, did watchful staff members start swooping in to “borrow” Bamberger’s chain saw whenever they caught him tramping around the property with one.

From The Wall Street Journal

We recently paid $1,000 for a tree to be removed from our property; it was easily accessible and felled by one person with a chain saw.

From The Wall Street Journal

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.