Part 189

3. (Bot.) A troublesome grass, growing as a weed in grain fields; -- called also chess. See Chess.

4. (Law) The obtaining of property from another by an intentional active distortion of the truth.

&fist; When cheats are effected by deceitful or illegal symbols or tokens which may affect the public at large and against which common prudence could not have guarded, they are indictable at common law. Wharton.

Syn. -- Deception; imposture; fraud; delusion; artifice; trick; swindle; deceit; guile; finesse; stratagem.

Cheat, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Cheated; p. pr. & vb. n. Cheating.] [See Cheat, n., Escheat.] 1. To deceive and defraud; to impose upon; to trick; to swindle.

I am subject to a tyrant, a sorcerer, that by his cunning hath cheated me of this island. Shak.

2. To beguile. Sir W. Scott.

To cheat winter of its dreariness. W. Irving.

Syn. -- To trick; cozen; gull; chouse; fool; outwit; circumvent; beguile; mislead; dupe; swindle; defraud; overreach; delude; hoodwink; deceive; bamboozle.

Cheat, v. i. To practice fraud or trickery; as, to cheat at cards.

Cheat, n. [Perh. from OF. chetÚ goods, chattels.] Wheat, or bread made from wheat. [Obs.] Drayton.

Their purest cheat, Thrice bolted, kneaded, and subdued in paste. Chapman.

Cheat"a*ble (?), a. Capable of being cheated.

Cheat"a*ble*ness, n. Capability of being cheated.

Cheat"er (?), n. 1. One who cheats.

2. An escheator. [R.] Shak.

Che*bac"co (?), n. [From Chebacco, the former name of Essex, a town in Massachusetts where such vessels were built.] (Naut.) A narrow-sterned boat formerly much used in the Newfoundland fisheries; -- called also pinkstern and chebec. Bartlett.

Che"bec (?), n. (Naut.) See Chebacco.

Che*bec" (?), n. [Named from its note.] (Zo÷l.) A small American bird (Empidonax minimus); the least flycatcher.

Check (?), n. [OE. chek, OF. eschec, F. Úchec, a stop, hindrance, orig. check in the game of chess, pl. Úchecs chess, through AR., fr. Pers. shāh king. See Shah, and cf. Checkmate, Chess, Checker.] 1. (Chess) A word of warning denoting that the king is in danger; such a menace of a player's king by an adversary's move as would, if it were any other piece, expose it to immediate capture. A king so menaced is said to be in check, and must be made safe at the next move.

2. A condition of interrupted or impeded progress; arrest; stop; delay; as, to hold an enemy in check.

Which gave a remarkable check to the first progress of Christianity. Addison.

No check, no stay, this streamlet fears. Wordsworth.

3. Whatever arrests progress, or limits action; an obstacle, guard, restraint, or rebuff.

Useful check upon the administration of government. Washington.

A man whom no check could abash. Macaulay.

4. A mark, certificate, or token, by which, errors may be prevented, or a thing or person may be identified; as, checks placed against items in an account; a check given for baggage; a return check on a railroad.

5. A written order directing a bank or banker to pay money as therein stated. See Bank check, below.