chip away at

VERB

try

Synonyms

STRONGEST

attack seek struggle work

STRONG

aim aspire compete contend contest endeavor essay labor propose risk speculate strive tackle undertake venture wrangle

WEAK

bear down do one's best drive for exert oneself go after go all out go for have a crack have a go have a shot have a stab have a whack knock oneself out lift a finger make a bid make a pass at make an attempt make an effort put oneself out shoot for vie for

Antonyms

STRONGEST

idle laze rest surrender

STRONG

abstain agree be idle forget give in give up ignore neglect

WEAK

delight please

Example Sentences

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chip away at

Higher borrowing costs tend to hurt tech stocks because they make yield-bearing investments like bonds more attractive and chip away at future cash flows.

From Barron's ● Jun. 23, 2026

Firefighters were eventually forced to melt it down after fans attempted to thaw the sculpture with blowtorches and chip away at it with sledgehammers.

From BBC ● May 15, 2026

New Glenn could launch again as soon as Friday, a flight set to carry a satellite developed by Texas-based AST SpaceMobile, which would help Blue Origin chip away at a yearslong backlog of orders.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 15, 2026

This means you won’t receive as large a refund during tax season, but having consistently higher paychecks can help you chip away at that $30,000.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 11, 2026

Why go through the motions of getting an education and watch the war slowly chip away at the one thing I had loved here, the peace, the measureless, careless peace of the Devon summer?

From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles

chip away at

Example Sentences

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