chapess

chapess

English

Alternative forms

• chappess

Etymology

chap +‎ -ess

Noun

chapess (plural chapesses)

1. (Britain, informal) A female chap; a woman.
   • 1990, Samuel Gorley Putt, Wings of a Man's Life

     My friends are the undergraduates, chaps and chapesses, and as long as I can pour good wine down their gullets and listen into the small hours […]

   • 2005, James Hawes, Speak for England

     […] so naturally, we simply couldn't afford to have chaps and chapesses tying the knot and then not having babies after all that fuss.

   • 2006, Mark Simpson, Saint Morrissey

     Those revered as saints are usually very peculiar chaps and chapesses who succeeded in refusing life just short of actually killing themselves […]

Usage notes

• Generally only used in the phrase chaps and chapesses.