broke off a small piece from the edge or surface of something, or reduced something gradually bit by bit.
From Old English 'cyppan' meaning 'to cut.' Related to 'chip' as both a verb and noun; the noun sense (a small piece) developed from the action of chipping.
The term 'chipping away' at a problem became famous in modern motivation culture, but it's based on very real physics—water erodes mountains through constant, tiny chipping action over millennia.
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