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In modern humans the mandibular arch is formed by fusion at the centre of two separate bones, a process complete by two years of age. The thickening of this arch at the centre forms the prominent and distinctive chin. The well-defined chin and prominent nose of humans interrupt the generally vertical profile of adult human faces and are said to be distinguishing characteristics separating modern humans from prehuman ancestors and from other primates.

Sitting at the bottom of the face, and being the most visible element of the face during speech, the chin plays numerous important physical roles and has acquired several fascinating linguistic associations. The phrase ‘to hold up by the chin’, and the nursery story's line of escaping ‘by the hairs of my chinny-chin-chin’ both express the physical prominence of the chin; one conveys the role of the chin as a support that keeps one from sinking while the other marks the chin as a protrusion one must protect. The chin-strap of a hat or helmet secures that accessory to the head, while being ‘in it up to your chin’ and ‘chin deep’ — in water or in trouble — both reflect the role of the chin as the lowest point of the face, after which all is lost. To ‘keep your chin up’ or to ‘take it on the chin’ signify a measure of psychological or physical courage or fortitude indicated by keeping one's gaze straight ahead and not flinching. Finally, the less common usages of ‘chin-wagging’ or ‘chin-chin’ refer to chat or talk, and reflect the fact that the movement of the chin is both highly visible during and a key visual cue of speech.

The chin continues to develop through adolescence and early adulthood as other facial (especially nasal and dental) structures mature. As the size of the face relative to the cranium increases, the angle of the vertical slope from forehead to chin decreases and the chin becomes more protrusive in profile. These changes have been shown to be an important part of the facial cues commonly used to identify the age of individuals. Recent work in experimental psychology suggests that the characteristic differences between adult and infant human faces, and especially the softer, less angular features — including a less prominent chin — of infants play an important role in inhibiting aggression toward infants and stimulating caregiving. As psychologist Leslie Zebrowitz put it recently, ‘A baby's face is disarming’, an observation confirmed both by experiment and by the everyday experience of adults interacting with infants.

The chin plays a very important part in these experiences, and the presence of an adult chin in an adult face when placed on an infant's body is visually disorienting, as can be observed in portrayals of the Madonna from the late Middle Ages. Cimabue's Madonna Enthroned (c.1280-90), Duccio's Maestà (c.1311), and Giotto's Madonna (c.1310) all portray the Christ child with a baby's body and an adult's face, with adult facial/cranial proportions, eye size and spacing, and nose size and prominence, and also, notably, a very adult chin. Later works, including Parmigianino's Madonna With the Long Neck (c.1535) soften the child's face, showing more features of the ‘baby face’, including a less prominent chin, and provide a less jarring visual experience.

While a babyish chin and face often elicit caregiving from adults, a ‘weak’, or relatively undeveloped chin in adults, and especially in adult males, one less angular and elongated than average, often produces less positive reactions from other adults (‘Chinless Wonder’). While it is difficult to separate the impact of the several components of a baby face in such responses, some evidence points to a prominent role for the chin. When presented with two similar faces distinguished largely by chin profile and development, the face with a typical adult chin is more likely to be associated with intelligence, physical strength, dominance, and sexual attractiveness, while the face with the more baby-like chin is frequently associated with lower levels of those features and higher levels of warmth, honesty, and agreeability. A quick glance at the profile of the traditional ‘leading man’ in cinema confirms these reactions; Clark Gable, Kirk Douglas, and other prominent stars display very prominent chins. The undeveloped, receding chin is characteristically a feature of an agreeable if immature or foolish character. In keeping with the association with babyish faces, weak chins are less common in movie villains than in more ‘innocent’ characters. Such casting and the reactions to it echo the claims of nineteenth- and twentieth-century physiognomy, that intellectual, psychological, and moral fitness can be discerned from facial (and other physical) features. As cited by Zebrowitz, the twentieth-century physiognomist, LeBarr, stated that ‘a small deficient chin stands for weakness of will and physical endurance’, while the nineteenth-century Swiss physiognomist, J. C. Lavater, categorized chins in men in a similar vein: ‘The angular chin is seldom found but in well-disposed, firm men … flatness of chin speaks of the cold and dry; smallness, fear; and roundness, with a dimple, benevolence.’

As with most facial features, there are important gender-prototypical differences in the development of the chin. Typical adult females have smaller jaws, noses, and chins, and thus eyes and cheekbones that are more prominent and appear to be larger than in typical males. The less prominent chin in females does not appear to generate the negative reactions it does in men. To judge from the psychological evidence and from experience, conventional assumptions associate attractiveness in female faces with those features most similar to the baby face. Apparently, men but not women (at least in cultures much like our own) are expected to be able to ‘take it on the chin’, and are deemed more attractive if they can.

— Jeffrey M. Barker

See also face; skull.

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IN BRIEF: The central forward portion of the lower jaw.

He nicked his chin while shaving.

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sign description: The signer points to his chin.

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A part of an aircraft structure that sticks out from the region under the aircraft nose. Examples include chin intake, chin blister, and chin radome. Some military aircraft have chin turrets.

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noun
noun, orig and mainly US

A talk, conversation; spec. insolent talk, cheek. (1877 —) .
New Yorker We'd like to have a little chin with you right now (1952). Cf. chin-wag noun and verb.

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The anterior prominence of the lower jaw; the mentum.

• fat-c., c. edema — lower lip swelling or nodules; part of the feline eosinophilic granuloma complex.

  Fat-chin in a cat.

• stripped c. — see labial avulsion.

n

The raised triangular extension of the anterior portion of the mandible below the lower lip. It is formed by the mental protuberance of the mandible.

For a list of words related to chin, see:

• Head and Neck - chin: portion of face below lower lip at projection of lower jaw

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See words rhyming with "chin."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Chin.

Dansk (Danish)
n. - hage, samtale, sludder
v. tr. - hæve sig i armene
v. intr. - sludre, snakke løs

idioms:

• chin wag    sludder
• chins are wagging    snakken går
• keep one's chin up    holde humøret oppe
• take on the chin    få et kæbestød

Nederlands (Dutch)
kin, met de kin vasthouden (viool), (zich) optrekken tot kinhoogte, kletsen

Français (French)
n. - menton
v. tr. - frapper au menton, mettre le menton au niveau de (gymnastique)
v. intr. - (US) bavarder

idioms:

• chin wag    causette, faire la causette
• chins are wagging    les langues vont bon train
• keep one's chin up    tenir le coup, faire face à (qn)
• take it on the chin    tiens le coup (excl)

Deutsch (German)
n. - Kinn
v. - Klimmzüge machen, (Slang) daherreden

idioms:

• chin wag    es gibt Gerede
• chins are wagging    die Leute klatschen
• keep one's chin up    den Kopf nicht hängen lassen
• take it on the chin    (ugs.) einen harten Schlag einstecken, (ugs.) es mit Fassung tragen

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - πιγούνι, σαγόνι, προγούλι
v. - κάνω έλξεις στο μονόζυγο, (καθομ.) φλυαρώ

idioms:

• chin wag    (Βρετ., καθομ.) παρλάρω, φλυαρώ
• chins are wagging    η συζήτηση έχει ανάψει
• keep one's chin up    διατηρώ το κουράγιο μου, δεν το βάζω κάτω
• take on the chin    (καθομ.) υπομένω στωικά

Italiano (Italian)
mento

idioms:

• keep one's chin up    non scoraggiarsi
• take on the chin    affrontare con coraggio

Português (Portuguese)
n. - queixo (m) (Anat.)
v. - fazer flexões na barra fixa, aparar o violino no queixo, conversar (gír.)

idioms:

• chin wag    reunião para fofocas (Brit.)
• keep one's chin up    manter a cabeça erguida
• take on the chin    ser derrotado

Русский (Russian)
подбородок

idioms:

• chin wag    треп
• keep one's chin up    не унывать нос, держать хвост пистолетом
• take on the chin    перенести удар

Español (Spanish)
n. - barbilla, mentón
v. tr. - charlar, parlotear
v. intr. - ponerse bajo la barba

idioms:

• chin wag    chismorrear, cotillear
• chins are wagging    se está comentando
• keep one's chin up    no perder el ánimo
• take it on the chin    aguantar algo con resignación, mantenerse firme

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - haka, snack (sl.)
v. - snacka med (sl.), klippa till

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
下巴, 下颚, 用下巴夹住, 引体向上, 与...聊天, 聊天, 闲谈, 作引体向上动作

idioms:

• chin wag    会话, 交谈, 闲聊
• chins are wagging    唠叨, 打屁
• keep one's chin up    不气馁
• take on the chin    输, 忍受责罚, 挨揍

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 下巴, 下顎
v. tr. - 用下巴夾住, 引體向上, 與...聊天
v. intr. - 聊天, 閒談, 作引體向上動作

idioms:

• chin wag    會話, 交談, 閒聊
• chins are wagging    嘮叨, 打屁
• keep one's chin up    不氣餒
• take on the chin    輸, 忍受責罰, 挨揍

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 턱
v. tr. - 턱에 갖다 대다, 턱걸이 하다, 말을 걸다
v. intr. - 턱에 갖다 대다, 턱걸이 하다, 말을 걸다

idioms:

• keep one's chin up    낙담하지 않다
• take on the chin    패배하다, 참고 견디다

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - あご
v. - 懸垂する

idioms:

• chin wag    べらべらしゃべる
• take on the chin    あごにくらう, じっと耐え忍ぶ

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) ذقن, حنك (فعل) يتكلم‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮סנטר‬
v. tr. - ‮הרים את סנטרו או אל סנטרו‬
v. intr. - ‮פטפט (מדוברת)‬

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