School / A1

CHORK/tʃɔːk/

Chalk is a soft white (or coloured) stick used for writing on a blackboard. Usually uncountable: chalk, some chalk, a piece of chalk; coloured chalks (plural sticks). A crayon is wax for paper, not a board; a pen writes with ink on paper. A whiteboard uses a special pen, not chalk. Mix-up: chalk vs talk (to speak) — extra ch vs t; and chalk vs cheese in the phrase chalk and cheese (very different) — later.

Meaning

A soft white or coloured stick used for writing on a blackboard.

Examples

• “The teacher wrote with white chalk.”
• “There is no chalk by the blackboard.”
• “Do not eat the chalk — it is not a sweet.”

Good to know

uncountable: chalk / a piece of chalk. Contrast: crayon (wax, paper), pen (ink). Mix-up: talk.

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