/ tʃes; NAmE / noun
[ U ] a game for two people played on a board marked with black and white squares on which each playing piece (representing a king, queen, castle, etc.) is moved according to special rules. The aim is to put the other player's king in a position from which it cannot escape (= to checkmate it).
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WORD ORIGIN
Middle English : from Old French esches , plural of eschec a check from medieval Latin scaccus , via Arabic from Persian šāh king.