Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - chad

 or French Tchad  geographical name country N central Africa capital N'Djamena; a republic; until 1959 a territory of French Equatorial Africa area 495,752 square miles (1,288,955 square kilometers), population 5,200,000  • ~ian adjective or noun CHAD  noun  Etymology: origin unknown  Date: 1944 small pieces of paper or cardboard produced in punching paper tape or data cards; also a piece of ~  • ~less adjective