Chess figures / pieces / chessmen

[milan2003_07]

I am a chessplayer and I've been playing chess since my childhood when I was about six years old.

I know several synonyms to speak about chess figures: chess pieces, chessmen.

Which word(s) do you use most commonly in everyday life to speak about chess figures?

 

[teechar]

I am a chessplayer and I've been playing chess since my childhood when I was about six years old.

That's impressive.

I know several synonyms to speak about for chess figures: chess pieces, chessmen.

You'll hear "chessman/chessmen", but you'll find that "chess piece(s)" is very common.

Which word(s) do you use most commonly in everyday life to speak about chess figures?

See above, but note that nor an "everyday life" topic for many people!

 

[jutfrank]

I play quite a lot of chess and I know a lot of other people who also do. We call them 'pieces'. I doubt that barely anybody would ever call them 'chessmen'.

If you're talking about the pieces in an uncountable sense, we commonly use the word 'material'. For example, let's say you've captured more pieces than your opponent has—you could then say that you have a 'material' advantage. Or you might say "I'm up in material but my position is weaker."