Emily Dickinson Lexicon

CHAP'TER, n. [Fr. chapitre; L. capitulum, a head; It. capitolo; Sp. capitulo; from L. caput, the head.]

1. A division of a book or treatise; as, Genesis contains fifty chapters. Hence the phrase, To the end of the chapter, that is, throughout; to the end.
2. In ecclesiastical polity, a society or community of clergymen, belonging to a cathedral or collegiate church. – Encyc.
3. A place where delinquents receive discipline and correction. – Ayliffe.
4. A decretal epistle. – Ayliffe.