Chainsaw

How to spell chainsaw

8 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce chainsaw

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does chainsaw mean?

1. nounA portable power tool that cuts wood using teeth set on a fast-moving chain.

Chainsaw in a sentence

• He refuelled the chainsaw before felling the dead oak.

• Safety goggles and gloves are essential when operating a chainsaw.

Where does chainsaw come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

This is a transparent compound of two much older English words. The first element, chain, came into English in the 1300s from the Old French chaeine, which descended from the Latin catena, meaning quite literally a series of connected links. The second element, saw, is a native Germanic word that goes all the way back to Old English sagu, related to a root meaning to cut, the same idea that lies behind the words section and segment. The two were joined in the early twentieth century to name the new power tool whose teeth are set onto a moving loop of chain rather than a flat blade. The spelling is wholly regular, since both halves keep their familiar everyday forms with nothing hidden between them.

How the word is built

• chain (linked metal loop)
• saw (cutting tool with a toothed blade)