Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
Usage examples of "chess-board".
We were seated on a sofa, and on the table in front of us was a chess-board.
They found him the next morning, his head collapsed across the chess-board he had asked for.
This done, we divided it carefully between us, swallowed it in silence, spread our old overcoat on the ground, tucked chess-board, can, and spoon under far enough to be out of the reach of thieves, adjusted the thin blanket so as to get the most possible warmth out of it, crawled in close together, and went to sleep.
The Pertane transmitter started moving them around like pieces on a chess-board, using coded map-references that meant nothing to the listener.
Ramage felt he was looking down on the chess-board and could see the next half dozen moves with unnatural clarity: unless Sir John signalled at once for the eight ships forming the rear of the British line to tack together and head them off, there was nothing to stop Cordoba's ships running down to join his other six ships to leeward as soon as they rounded the Excellent's stern, and with his fleet united once again, Cordoba could then resume his dash for the safety of Cadiz.