1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Chisel

CHISEL (from the O. Fr. cisel, modern ciseau, Late Lat. cisellum, a cutting tool, from caedere, to cut), a sharp-edged tool for cutting metal, wood or stone. There are numerous varieties of chisels used in different trades; the carpenter’s chisel is wooden-handled with a straight edge, transverse to the axis and bevelled on one side; stone masons’ chisels are bevelled on both sides, and others have oblique, concave or convex edges. A chisel with a semicircular blade is called a “gouge.” The tool is worked either by hand-pressure or by blows from a hammer or mallet. The “cold chisel” has a steel edge, highly tempered to cut unheated metal. (See Tool.)