One way to hold this word: two surfaces rubbing on the same small spot, over and over, and the heat that builds up there. Rub your palms together and you feel it — first warmth, then, if you keep going, a burn. Everything this word does lives somewhere on that line between warmth and soreness. Nothing here happens in one blow; it all takes time.
From the word’s history
Inherited from Middle English chaufen, to warm, borrowed from Old French chaufer, going back through Vulgar Latin to Latin calefacere, from calere, to be warm, plus facere, to make. So the word began as make warm, and rubbing is how you do that.
chafe 承自中古英語 chaufen（弄熱），借自古法文 chaufer，再往上經俗拉丁語回到拉丁文 calefacere：calere（熱）加 facere（做）。換句話說，這個字本來就是「把東西弄熱」，而摩擦正是弄熱的辦法。
Wiktionary (kaikki extract) entry for chafe, etymology tree: Middle English chaufen < Old French chaufer < Latin calefacere (calere + facere); packet source_ref kaikki:3f6f69a190036ae4:632222587:20170
登入就可以看每一支怎麼連回核心畫面。