chaff
/t͡ʃæf/noun, verb
chaff is spelled C-H-A-F-F: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 39,336th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, chaff means “The inedible parts of a grain-producing plant” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of chaff is chaffs.
How many letters and syllables are in chaff?
| Letters | 5: C-H-A-F-F |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 39,336th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is chaff?
Chaff appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 39,336th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce chaff?
- UK /t͡ʃæf/
- UK /t͡ʃɑːf/
- US /t͡ʃæf/
Chaff has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-chaff.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with chaff?
7 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as chaff from its last stressed vowel (/æf/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of chaff
- chaffs plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- chaffing participle, present
- chaffed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does chaff mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The inedible parts of a grain-producing plant.
To separate out the chaff, early cultures tossed baskets of grain into the air and let the wind blow away the lighter chaff.
- 2
Straw or hay cut up fine for the food of cattle.
- 3
Any excess or unwanted material, resource, or person; anything worthless.
- 4
Light jesting talk; banter; raillery.
- 5
Loose material, e.g. small strips of aluminum foil dropped from aircraft, intended to interfere with radar detection.
verb
- 1
To use light, idle language by way of fun or ridicule; to banter.
- 2
To make fun of; to turn into ridicule by addressing in ironical or bantering language.
- 3
To cut up (straw or hay) for use as cattle feed.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Chaff in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | balle, bale |
| German | Spreu, Kaff, Spelze , Düppel |
| Portuguese | moinha, palha |
| Spanish | paja, barcia, bagazo, tamo , pienso |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does chaff come from?
From Middle English chaf, from Old English ċeaf, from Proto-West Germanic *kaf. Cognate with Scots caff, Saterland Frisian Sääf, West Frisian tsjêf, Dutch kaf, German Low German Kaff, regional German Kaff.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).