The word chop has several related meanings:

1. To cut something into pieces with a quick, forceful downward motion, usually with a knife, ax, or similar tool. When you chop vegetables for dinner, you cut them repeatedly with a knife against a cutting board. A lumberjack chops down a tree with an ax. The motion is swift and decisive, quite different from careful slicing or sawing.
2. A thick slice of meat that includes a rib bone, like a pork chop or lamb chop. These cuts got their name because butchers originally chopped them from larger pieces of meat.
3. A short, sharp striking movement. In karate, a karate chop is a quick strike with the side of the hand. A chop in tennis or ping-pong means hitting the ball with a quick downward motion that makes it spin.

The word suggests quickness and force. When you chop wood, you're not gently cutting it. You're bringing the blade down with power and speed. Even when someone chops vegetables, there's a rhythm and energy to it: chop, chop, chop on the cutting board.