Webster's English Dictionary

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chess

1. chess \'ches\ \-.bo-(*)rd, -.bo.(*)rd\ \-.man, -m*n\ n [ME ches, fr. OF 
   esches, acc. pl. of eschec check at chess m more at CHECK : a game for 2 
   players each of whom moves his 16 pieces according to fixed  rules across a 
   checkerboard and tries to checkmate his opponent's king - chess.board n
2. chess n [origin unknown] : a weedy annual bromegrass (Bromus secalinus) 
   widely distributed as  a weed esp. in grain; broadly : any weedy bromegrass