The word is chock-full, not chalk-full. Chock-full means full to the limit. Its origins are mysterious, though there are many theories that we won’t go into here. There is usually a hyphen between chock and full, though you’ll often see the term with a space instead of a hyphen. Here’s are a few examples of chock-full used well:
This Blu-ray is chock-full of extras, and they’re worth digging into. [Hollywood.com]
Today, that mine, chock-full of so-called rare-earth metals, is responsible for one of the fastest windfalls in private-equity history . . . [Wall Street Journal]
But really, the collection (from Versace’s secondary line) was chock-full of pieces that would find favor on the red carpet any day of the week. [Los Angeles Times]
For some reason, it’s quite common for writers who use this phrase to follow it with o’—as in,
Meanwhile, the internet is chock full o’ rumors that the Yankees are about to make a trade for a starter. [Boston Globe]
We don’t know where this comes from. And as far as we know, the origins of chock-full are mysterious. Any ideas?
