chrome

/kroʊm/

/krəʊm/

Other forms: chromed; chromes; chroming

Chrome is a very shiny layer of metallic coating that's applied to a metal surface. When you clean your bathroom, you might polish the chrome faucet until it gleams.

Some cars have chrome details, like a chrome bumper or chrome wheels, and kitchen and bathroom fixtures can be made of chrome as well. Rather than being one type of solid metal, things made of chrome are generally coated with chromium plate as a protective or decorative layer. The word chrome comes from the element chromium, which is rooted in the Greek khroma, "color."

Definitions of chrome

1. noun

   another word for chromium when it is used in dyes or pigments
   type of:

   Cr, atomic number 24, chromium

   a hard brittle multivalent metallic element; resistant to corrosion and tarnishing
2. verb

   plate with chromium
   “chrome bathroom fixtures”

   synonyms: chromium-plate

   type of:

   plate

   coat with a layer of metal
3. verb

   treat with a chromium compound
   type of:

   process, treat

   subject to a process or treatment, with the aim of readying for some purpose, improving, or remedying a condition