chug1
/tʃʌɡ
/verb (chugs, chugging, chugged) [no object, with adverbial of direction]
1(Of a vehicle or boat) move slowly making regular muffled explosive sounds, as of an engine running slowly: a cabin cruiser was chugging down the river...
- But all too soon the boat had chugged slowly past St Mark's Square, into the Grand Canal and up to the small landing stage a short amble from our hotel.
- Although boats chugged up and down the water on a regular basis (the river was a designated highway), road access was limited.
- Two battered motor vehicles chugged down one side of the street, throwing out huge clouds of dirty black smoke.
1.1 [no object] Make a series of muffled explosive sounds: he could hear the pipes chugging...
- I could hear machinery of some kind chugging away inside.
- You can actually hear his brain make chugging noises when he thinks.
- We hear the chugging, as it comes closer to the station.
noun
A muffled explosive sound or sounds: the chug of a motor boat...
- AS THE chug of a train rumbles overhead, Andy Arnold takes a seat amid the lunchtime bustle of the Arches theatre bar in Glasgow's city centre.
- She brushed aside branches, following the chug of an unseen train that got louder and louder until finally, another whistle sounded into the air.
- Cobalt blue water lies around every bend and at dawn you'll have the chug chug of the lobster fleet for an alarm clock.
Origin
Mid 19th century (as a noun): imitative.
Rhymes
chug2
/tʃʌɡ/(also chugalug) North American informal
verb (chugs, chugging, chugged) [with object]
Consume (a drink) in large gulps without pausing: she chugged a glass of cola...
- Vinny brought the plastic cup of beer to his mouth and tipped his head back, gulping nervously, chugging the entire beverage in just a few slurps.
- Unfortunately, I hate black jelly beans, and I thought it tasted nasty, so I wound up chugging my drinks, which is really not the point of absinthe.
- It made recycling very easy to find, and if you wanted to just stand there and chug your drink, it was very easy to then recycle the bottle.
noun
A large gulp of a drink: Chris took a long chug of his beer...
- The Earl took a hefty chug of brandy from his bottle.
- He lifted the brown glass bottle and took a long, gulping chug.
- Well, join me later on, and there will be chug by chug updates.
Origin
1950s: imitative.