Emily Dickinson Lexicon

CHI-CANE', n. [Fr. chicane; Arm. cican or cicanerez. Qu. Sax. swican, to deceive.]

1. In law, shift; turn; trick; cavil; an abuse of judiciary proceedings, by artifices, unfair practices, or idle objections, which tend to perplex a cause, puzzle the judge, or impose on a party, and thus to delay or pervert justice.
2. In disputes, sophistry; distinctions and subtleties, that tend to perplex the question and obscure the truth. – Locke.
3. Any artifice or stratagem. – Prior.