chisel

chisel (one) out of (something)

To swindle something from one. That con man chiseled us out of thousands, I'm ashamed to say. A lot of bad checks have been circulating in the area lately, claiming to be from the local university; in reality, they are scams trying to chisel people out of money. The company's CEO managed to chisel his clients out of millions of dollars, and it was all done in such a way that no one noticed the disappearance of the money until it was too late.

See also: chisel, of, out

chisel (something) from (one)

To swindle something from one. That con man chiseled thousands of dollars from us, I'm ashamed to say. A lot of bad checks have been circulating in the area lately, claiming to be from the local university; in reality, they are scams trying to chisel money from people. The company's CEO managed to chisel millions of dollars from his clients, and it was all done in such a way that no one noticed the disappearance of the money until it was too late.

See also: chisel

chisel (something) out of (someone)

To swindle something from one. That con man chiseled thousands of dollars out of us, I'm ashamed to say. A lot of bad checks have been circulating in the area lately, claiming to be from the local university; in reality, they are scams trying to chisel money out of people. The company's CEO managed to chisel millions of dollars out of his clients, and it was all done in such a way that no one noticed the disappearance of the money until it was too late.

See also: chisel, of, out

chisel away

1. Literally, to chip or cut something away (from something else) with or as if with a chisel. In this usage, a noun or pronoun can be used between "chisel" and "away." The sculptor chiseled bits of marble away until slowly his vision began to take shape. I had to use a screwdriver to chisel away the limescale that had built up around the edges of the pipe. Good luck chiseling a lifetime's worth of old paint away from these walls.

2. To work continuously or freely with or as if with a chisel. Janet is never so happy as when she's chiseling away at a new sculpture. We'll need to get these barnacles off. Here, take this hammer and screwdriver and start chiseling away. He's been chiseling away at that block for weeks? And it still doesn't look like any discernable thing? Yikes.

3. To erode or diminish (something) incrementally but continuously. The underdog team fell behind early on, but they've been chiseling away at their opponents' lead throughout the second half. His sarcastic remarks have really chiseled away my self-confidence over the years. Sadly, all of the recent issues with our car have chiseled away at our home renovation budget.

4. To make continuous incremental progress (on something). A: "How's the novel coming?" B: "Oh, I'm still chiseling away at it. I'm hoping to be done by the end of the year." Try not to get too overwhelmed about cleaning the house and just chisel away at it one room at a time. Whew! I had to chisel away at it for a week, but I finally cleared out all those unread emails!

See also: away, chisel

chisel in

slang To gain part of or involvement in something by unfair methods. Any time my parents give me money, my brother manages to chisel in on it by whining to them. She's the CEO's daughter, so she can pretty much chisel in on anything by complaining to her dad. Just when I thought I had the lead on this project, obnoxious Adam managed to chisel in somehow.

See also: chisel

chisel in on (someone or something)

slang To gain part of or involvement in something by unfair methods. Any time my parents give me money, my brother manages to chisel in on it by whining to them. She's the CEO's daughter, so she can pretty much chisel in on anything by complaining to her dad. Just when I thought I had the lead on this project, obnoxious Adam managed to chisel in on it somehow.

See also: chisel, on

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

chisel in (on someone or something)

Sl. to use deception to get a share of something. I won't chisel in on your deal. You had better not chisel in!

See also: chisel

chisel someone out of something

 and chisel something out of someone; chisel something from someone

to get something away from someone by cheating. The scam tried to chisel pension money out of retired people.

See also: chisel, of, out

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

chisel in (on someone/something)

in. to use deception to get a share of something. I won’t chisel in on your deal.

See also: chisel, on, someone, something

chisel in

verb

See chisel in on someone/something

See also: chisel

McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.