English Explanatory Dictionary

chew

English dictionary entry

Meanings

verb
  1. To crush with the teeth by repeated closing and opening of the jaws; done to food to soften it and break it down by the action of saliva before it is swallowed.
  2. To grind, tear, or otherwise degrade or demolish something with teeth or as with teeth.
  3. To think about something; to ponder; to chew over.
noun
  1. The act of chewing; mastication with the mouth.
  2. Level of chewiness.
  3. A small sweet, such as a taffy, that is eaten by chewing.
  4. Chewing tobacco.
  5. A plug or wad of chewing tobacco; chaw or a chaw.
  6. The condition of something being torn or ground up mechanically.
name
  1. A surname.
  2. A river in Somerset, England.

Pronunciation

/tʃuː/ /tʃʉw/ /tʃɪʊ̯/ cho͞o /t͡ʃ(j)u/ En-us-chew.ogg

Word forms

chew chews chewing chewed chewn

Etymology

From Middle English chewen, from Old English ċēowan, from Proto-West Germanic *keuwan, from Proto-Germanic *kewwaną, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵyewh₁-. Cognate with West Frisian kôgje, Low German käwwen, Dutch kauwen, German kauen; also Latin gingīva (“gums”), Tocharian B śuwaṃ (“to eat”), Polish żuć (“to chew”), Persian جویدن (javidan), Pashto ژول (žovạl, “to bite, gnaw”).

Synonyms

bite chavel chomp crunch masticate grind pulverize rip shred tear contemplate ruminate mull muse ponder

Related words

pa chew cheng

Derived words

bite off more than one can chew chewable chew-and-spit chewer chewing ball chewing gum chewing louse chewing sponge chewing stick chewing tobacco chew off chew on chew on one's nails chew on the scenery chew out chew over chew stick chew the cud chew the fat chew the meat and spit out the bones chew the rag chew the scenery chew up chew up and spit out chew up the scenery chewy cut off more than one can chew I don't chew my cabbage twice mad enough to chew nails prechew rag-chewing rechew walk and chew gum at the same time chewcard chewie chewproof chewstick chew toy chobble dog chew midchew penny chew Chew Magna Chew Stoke
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