Meaning & use
chipping away
Last updated
“chipping away” is a form of “chip away”.
Meanings
verbphrasal verbfigurative
Making steady progress on a large task or problem by dealing with it a little at a time.
Grammar: No direct object; use at: chipping away at the backlog.
Patterns
- chip away at something
She keeps chipping away at her student loans.
We are chipping away at the pile of paperwork.
Chipping away at the problem every day will pay off.
verbphrasal verbfigurative
Gradually reducing or weakening something, such as support, trust or a lead.
Grammar: Often has at plus something that is damaged: chipping away at confidence.
Patterns
- chip away at something
Constant criticism was chipping away at his confidence.
Rising prices are chipping away at our savings.
verbphrasal verb
Removing small pieces from a hard surface with a tool or by knocking it.
Grammar: Literal use: the workers chipped away the old plaster.
Patterns
- chip away something
- chip away at something
The workers were chipping away at the old plaster.
He is chipping away the ice from the car windows.
Word forms
| third person singular | chips away |
|---|---|
| past tense | chipped away |
| past participle | chipped away |
| -ing form | chipping away |
Common combinations
- chipping away at the problem
- The team kept chipping away at the problem.
- chipping away at debt
- They are chipping away at their debt.
- slowly chipping away
- Time is slowly chipping away at the old walls.
- chipping away at the lead
- The challenger is chipping away at the lead.
- chipping away at trust
- Lies are chipping away at trust.
Synonyms and how they differ
- whittle down
- Whittle down stresses reducing a quantity gradually, not working steadily toward a goal.
- plug away
- Plug away means to work on a boring task persistently, with no sense of wearing something down.
- erode
- Erode is more formal and always about wearing something away, never about positive progress.
- nibble away
- Nibble away suggests even smaller, slower bites, and usually something being lost.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: chipping away or chip in?
chipping away vs chip in
Chip in means to contribute money or help, whereas chip away means to make slow progress or wear something down.
Practice
I cannot clear the whole inbox today, but I am ___ at it.
Choose one answer.
Chip away at means to work gradually. Chip in means to contribute, and the other options do not fit the pattern with at.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “chipping away”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.