chowt

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A form of chout — An assessment equal to a quarter of the revenue, levied by the Marathas from other Indian kingdoms as compensation for being exempted from plunder.

OriginMarathi चौथ →
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Meanings

nounchowt (countable and uncountable, plural chowts)

plural chowts

  1. BritishIndiaalternativecountablehistoricaluncountableAlternative spelling of chout.
    1 more example

    Another claim, called chowt, was levied by the powerful Mahratta after plundering Surat (A.D. 1670) ; it amounted to one-fourth of the revenue, and exempted the district from plunder as long as it was regularly paid. This kind of black-mail was afterwards enforced by every Mahratta chief to the extent of his power.

    1858, George Trevor, India: An Historical Sketch, London: Religious Tract Society, page 136

Origin

  1. Marathiचौथ“one quarter”
  2. Englishchowt

Borrowed from Marathi चौथ (cauth, “one quarter”).

More words from Marathi

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

chowt. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chowt

MLA

“chowt.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chowt. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “chowt,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chowt.

Source: chowt on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.