chisel up

verb — 2 senses

chisel up

verb
1

Literally To create by chiseling.

  • He chiseled up the details on the sculpture.
2

To cast off splinters or pieces like might be created by chiseling; to (figuratively) cause many or small weak results.

  • The sight chiseled up old anxieties.
  • When the car crashed into the deck, it chiseled up sharp splinters of wood.

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.