Definition of chamber
Etymology
From French chambre from Latin camera from Ancient Greek καμάρα (kamara), "vaulted chamber").
Pronunciation
Noun
chamber (plural chambers)
- A room, especially one used primarily for sleeping; bedroom, sleeping room.
* 1845, Edgar Allen Poe, The Raven,
Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
- An enclosed space. For example, a test chamber is typically a closable case where devices under test are placed.
- In a firearm, this is the portion of the weapon that holds the ammunition round immediately prior to (and during initiation of) its discharge.
Dianne loaded a cartridge into the chamber of the rifle, then prepared to take aim at the target.
- One of the legislative bodies in a government where multiple such bodies exist, or a single such body in comparison to others.
The resolution, which speedily passed the Senate, was unable to gain a majority in the lower chamber.
Related terms
- bubble chamber
- chamberlain
- chambermaid
- chamber music
- chamber of commerce
- chamber pot
- cloud chamber
- in chambers
- Wilson chamber
Verb
to chamber (third-person singular simple present chambers, present participle chambering, simple past and past participle chambered)
- To enclose in a room.
She had chambered herself in her room, and wouldn't come out.
- To place in a chamber, as a round of ammunition.
The hunter fired at the geese and missed, then shrugged his shoulders and chambered another cartridge.
- To create or modify a gun to be a specific caliber.
The rifle was originally chambered for 9MM, but had since been modified for a larger, wildcat caliber.
References:
- Wiktionary. Published under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
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