How to Use chafe in a Sentence

chafe

1 of 2 verb
  • The baby's skin will chafe if the strap is too tight.
  • When the strap is too tight, it chafes the baby's skin.
  • If my boots aren't laced up tight they chafe.
  • Her lips were blue, her arms and legs chafed red.
    — Literary Hub, 7 Aug. 2025
  • This new life chafes my husband more than me.
    — Zinzi Clemmons, Los Angeles Times, 8 June 2026
  • So far, the court has chafed at the prospect of such reforms.
    — Justin Elliott, Joshua Kaplan and Alex Mierjeski, Anchorage Daily News, 22 June 2023
  • The upper doesn’t pinch or chafe, the laces stay tied, the tongue stays put.
    — Scott Douglas, Outside Online, 22 Feb. 2021
  • Still, some in and around Sherman have chafed at the changes.
    — J. David Goodman, New York Times, 14 Nov. 2023
  • Women love that this shapewear keeps thighs from chafing.
    — Bestreviews, Chicago Tribune, 24 Feb. 2026
  • Except half the time, those cute sandals rub, chafe, and leave my feet aching.
    — Alexandra Emanuelli, Southern Living, 22 June 2026
  • Yet the narrator seems to chafe against this a little, too.
    — Cressida Leyshon, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2025
  • Plus, their padded collar prevents chafing against calves.
    — Sian Babish, PEOPLE, 11 Dec. 2025
  • Some people chafe at the idea of spending money to save money.
    — Jessica Roy Assistant Editor, Los Angeles Times, 1 Jan. 2022
  • Others chafed at pre-empting local rules.
    — Mark Dee march 28, Idaho Statesman, 28 Mar. 2026
  • Most executives are chafing at the slow pace of change, though.
    — Paolo Confino, Fortune, 19 Jan. 2024
  • The fabric is soft yet supportive, and the device doesn't rub or chafe against the skin.
    — Lindsay Modglin, Verywell Health, 28 June 2023
  • Even the straps are made with a soft fabric that does not rub, chafe, or cause irritation.
    — Sherri Gordon, Health, 12 July 2023
  • The flat seams increase all-day comfort and won’t chafe under your backpack straps.
    — Fiona Tapp, CNN Underscored, 26 Mar. 2021
  • Soft leather straps don’t chafe the tops of your feet and the thong won’t cause painful blistering between the toes.
    — Katherine Alex Beaven, Travel + Leisure, 28 Mar. 2023
  • There’s no need to worry about damp, bunchy socks chafing and causing blisters.
    — Todd Plummer, Robb Report, 13 May 2023
  • On the flip side, the toe box is incredibly spacious and doesn’t chafe the sides of my feet.
    — Nicolette Accardi, Travel + Leisure, 30 May 2026
  • Her choice of words often chafed Party leaders.
    — Charles Bethea, New Yorker, 5 Jan. 2026
  • Stigwood chafed at making anything less than a gritty film.
    — Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 21 Aug. 2025
  • Adults chafe at being judged more than children do, and parental judgment stings more than judgment by strangers.
    — Carolyn Hax, Washington Post, 9 Aug. 2023
  • Trusty also chafed at having to run all of his decisions by Epshteyn first.
    — Tori Otten, The New Republic, 16 June 2023
  • Long spandex shorts are great for runners who tend to chafe or just want extra protection.
    — Ariella Gintzler, Outside Online, 27 May 2022
  • Drawers, for example, should fit snugly in the crotch, be loose at the knee and not be so thick as to chafe.
    — Bill Heavey, WSJ, 20 June 2021
  • But others have chafed at his involvement and his frequent veto threats.
    — Seth Klamann, Denver Post, 2 June 2026
  • Even in the sticky days of summer, the supple leather uppers never rub the wrong way or cause your feet to sweat or chafe.
    — Sophie Dodd, Travel + Leisure, 15 Mar. 2026
  • Those flies would have pestered surgeons already chafing under a heavy workload.
    — Michael Washburn, National Review, 31 Dec. 2023

chafe

2 of 2 noun
  • Not only that, the overlap cuff means no tongue to pinch, slide, or chafe.
    — Wired Staff, WIRED, 31 Mar. 2018
  • Simply rub in the cream to any areas that may rub and glide through the world chafe-free.
    — ELLE, 18 June 2022
  • The smooth, chafe-free waistband sat tidily beneath the hipbelt of my pack.
    — Kelly Bastone, Outside Online, 31 May 2018
  • Hiding out chafes against being perceived.
    — Julissa James, Los Angeles Times, 10 Mar. 2026
  • Both kids know about the devices and agreed to wear them, though the oldest sometimes chafes at having it.
    — Heather Kelly, Anchorage Daily News, 26 July 2023
  • But thankfully, there's a way to sort this scientific wheat from the chafe.
    — John Wenz, Popular Mechanics, 28 Aug. 2019
  • The chamois is equal to any top-level insert and has kept me comfy and chafe-free for rides as long as 10 hours.
    — Outside Online, 15 Aug. 2014
  • On Tuesday, the first formal day of the trial, the rule was already starting to chafe.
    — Emily Cochrane, New York Times, 21 Jan. 2020
  • That was the work of high school teachers; the job at the college level was simply to separate the wheat from the chafe.
    — Jenny Anderson, Quartz, 13 Sep. 2019
  • The soft details include a tagless design and chafe-free stitching, and the crew neck retains its shape well.
    — Bestreviews, Mercury News, 12 Sep. 2025
  • Silicone lube also happens to be a great hair de-frizzer and chafe-blocker when applied between the thighs.
    — Zoë Ligon, Allure, 14 Sep. 2017
  • Judges who are supposed to be neutral chafe at having to elicit testimony.
    — Arkansas Online, 24 Apr. 2021
  • Here are her tips on finding the best products to prevent chafe this summer—or any time of year when your legs just can’t seem to get enough of one another.
    — Adam Hurly, Robb Report, 31 May 2023
  • This pack is designed for women (or anyone with narrower shoulders) which means a more comfortable, chafe-free fit.
    — Emily Pennington, Condé Nast Traveler, 13 Mar. 2025
  • Abrasion-resistant seams reduce friction for chafe-free climbs while lightweight fabrics make the items more breathable.
    — Anna Haines, Forbes, 27 June 2022
  • This stylish, nylon-spandex blend top is breathable and chafe-free — in other words, it’s made for outdoor exploration on a warm, humid day.
    — Hillary Maglin, Travel + Leisure, 27 Mar. 2023
  • This set of five mid-rise thongs is designed for yoga and everyday wear, with chafe-resistant flat seams and a stretchy waistband that won’t dig into skin.
    — Sophie Dodd, Travel + Leisure, 26 Oct. 2025
  • For at least some of us in the room, the two straight days of performative big-hearted Westernness is beginning to chafe.
    — Dahlia Lithwick, Slate Magazine, 22 Mar. 2017
  • Life for the gallery residents is timeless and pleasant, for the most part, though some do chafe under Lord Beaverbrook’s strict rules.
    — Meghan Cox Gurdon, WSJ, 5 July 2018
  • An important but not visible bonus is that the inside fabric (the part that touches your feet) is made of breathable mesh—no chafe-causing foot sweat!
    — Tamim Alnuweiri, InStyle, 26 May 2026
  • Lil Dru chafes at the disrespect engendered by his short stature, proving his prowess by sinking reckless outside shots.
    — Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 1 June 2023
  • The barrel swivel acts as a stopper for the sinker slide, and the bead serves as chafe protection, so the sinker slide never butts up against the knot connecting the barrel swivel.
    — Joe Cermele, Field & Stream, 26 Oct. 2023
  • The hype around Ikea is counter to San Francisco’s mom-and-pop culture, which often chafes at any big corporate chains opening up shop.
    — Trisha Thadani, Washington Post, 23 Aug. 2023
  • The material is water-repellent and chafe-free, making the tights perfect for wearing in warm temperatures.
    — Michelle Baricevic, Travel + Leisure, 15 Mar. 2026
  • Its highly breathable mesh fabric upper keeps feet cool, dry, and chafe-free, while the ComforDry sockliner provides cushion and drainage.
    — Janna Irons, Popular Mechanics, 26 Mar. 2020
  • And what good would modernity really do for a woman whose lifeforce so violently chafes against patriarchal control?
    — David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 2 Dec. 2024
  • Malkovich’s subdued and convincing performance, defined by a low and drawn-out intonation, chafes against Green’s verbose screenplay.
    — Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 Jan. 2025
  • And this chafes against Bitcoin’s underlying ethos of decentralization.
    — Korok Ray, Forbes.com, 18 Apr. 2025
  • He's insisted on stiffer penalties and chafes when players deny knowingly taking PEDs in the face of positive tests.
    — Scott Boeck, USA TODAY, 15 May 2018
  • Isaly told me rub BodyGlide anti-chafe balm, not Vaseline—the petroleum breaks down a wetsuit over time—all over my forearms and calves to ease the process of getting it on and off.
    — Bette Marston, SI.com, 28 July 2017

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'chafe.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Last Updated: