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DictionarychumClose friend
noun

chum

CHUM/tʃʌm/

A close friend or companion.

She shares a relaxed lunch with an old chum.

Two close friends, Black woman and white woman, sharing a relaxed lunch.
Etymology
chumEnglishroom

Chamber means a room, and chum began as university slang for a roommate. The name for someone sharing your room broadened into a term for an intimate friend or companion.

In context

Vivid Audio Library162:33
I wouldn't sleep another night in that dormatory for anything you could offer me, confided Mona to her particular chum, Kathleen Drummond.
A Patriotic School Girl by Angela Brazil | Full Classic British School Story Audiobook

More examples

  • We have been chums since school.
  • His closest chum helped him move.
  • She wrote to a childhood chum.

Forms

chum · chums

Similar words

pal
An informal friend, with less old-fashioned coloring.
buddy
Buddy is similarly informal and can imply companionship without deep intimacy.