chew
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5++LDOCE 5++chew1 /tʃuː/ ●●● S2 verb 1 [intransitive, transitive]BITE to bite food several times before swallowing it 咀嚼；嚼碎 This meat’s so tough I can hardly chew it! 这肉太老了，我几乎嚼不动！chew at/on a dog chewing on a bone 在啃骨头的狗► see thesaurus at bite2 [intransitive, transitive]BITE to bite something continuously in order to taste it or because you are nervous 〔为了品尝或因紧张而〕不停地嚼，咬chew on We gave the dog an old shoe to chew on. 我们扔了一只旧鞋给狗去啃。chew your lip/nails 咬嘴唇/指甲chew gum/tobacco 嚼口香糖/烟草3. chew the cud if a cow or sheep chews the cud, it keeps biting on food it has brought up from its stomach 〔牛或羊〕反刍4. chew the fat informal to have a long friendly conversation 促膝长谈，闲聊 → bite off more than you can chew at bite1(10) PHRASAL VERBS→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
chew• There was a cow in the field, slowly chewing a mouthful of grass.• Helen sat there, chewing a piece of gum.• The squirrel did not chew bark to get at sap or something else.• Riven chewed bread which had turned to sand in his mouth.• The normally grass-rich ranges are barren, chewed down to dust by ravenous cattle.• My worst habit is chewing gum.• She finds an apple and chews it loudly, then she lifts her head and scans all around.• Do you want to chew on that?• I gave the baby my key ring to chew on.• To relieve catarrh, chew raw garlic.• Come here, Sausage, don't chew that rug!• All around me camels sat peacefully chewing the cud.• I chewed the toffee slowly.• You can just swallow oysters or you can chew them a little bit first.• Chew your food. Don't eat so quickly.chew at/on• I remember growing up in Baltimore and enjoying a flat style cinnamon toothpick to chew on.• Claude was chewing on an ice cube.• Hugh Farnham was discovered in a retirement home in Florida, living under an assumed identity, obsessively chewing on his rusks.• They chewed at it until, softened, it yielded, like blubber or leather, to their understanding.• She polished it off and began to chew on the ice.• After a while she noticed his reflected look and looked back, chewing on the leather chinstrap.• She chewed at the spiky end of a plait and kicked at a kitchen chair-leg.• Is there a gremlin outside, chewing on the wing of the plane?chew your lip/nails• And there one writing, probably a letter, holding the paper sideways and chewing her nails.• Walter flew out the door; leaving Gordy and Ivan chewing their lips and wringing their hands.• Prince William, 10, chewed his lip anxiously while eight-year-old Harry stared wistfully ahead, dreaming of Christmases past.• She chewed her nails in Muir of Ord.• Janine chewed her lip, staring spitefully at her child.• Emily chewed her lip, thinking about Hari and Craig.chew2 noun [countable] 1. BITEthe act of biting something many times with your teeth 嚼，咀嚼2. DFFa sweet that you chew 口香糖3. a piece of tobacco that you chew but do not swallow 咀嚼用的烟草Examples from the Corpus
chew• Rod Carew would insert a big chew to tighten his face and help him focus on an incoming pitch.• Babe Ruth accepts a plug of chew from his girlfriend before getting the game-winning hit.• a recipe for chocolate walnut chewsOrigin chew1 Old English ceowan bite to food times Corpus it several before swallowing
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chew
chew1 /tʃuː/ 
verb
This meat’s so tough I can hardly chew it!
chew at/on
a dog chewing on a bone
2. [intransitive and transitive] to bite something continuously in order to taste it or because you are nervous
chew on
We gave the dog an old shoe to chew on.
chew your lip/nails
chew gum/tobacco
3. chew the cud if a cow or sheep chews the cud, it keeps biting on food it has brought up from its stomach
4. chew the fat informal to have a long friendly conversation
⇨ bite off more than you can chew at bite1(10)
▪ bite to use your teeth to cut, crush, or chew something: The dog bit me! | I sometimes bite my fingernails when I’m nervous. | He bit into the apple.
▪chew to keep biting something that is in your mouth: Helen was chewing a piece of gum. | He was chewing on a cigar.
▪gnaw if an animal gnaws something, it bites it repeatedly: The dog was in the yard gnawing on a bone.
▪nip somebody/give somebody a nip to give someone or something a small sharp bite: When I took the hamster out of his cage, he nipped me.
▪nibble to take a lot of small bites from something: A fish nibbled at the bait. | She sat at her desk, nibbling her sandwich.
▪sink your teeth into somebody/something to bite someone or something with a lot of force, so that your teeth go right into them: The dog sank its teeth into my leg. | He sank his teeth into the steak.
▪chomp on something informal to bite something and chew it in a noisy way: The donkey was chomping on a carrot. | He was chomping away on big slice of toast.
▪sting if an insect stings you, it makes a very small hole in your skin. You use sting about bees, wasps, and scorpions, and bite about mosquitoes, ants, spiders, and snakes: She stepped on a wasps’ nest and must have been stung at least 20 times.
chew on something phrasal verb
informal to think carefully about something for a period of time
chew somebody ↔ out phrasal verb American English informal
to talk angrily to someone in order to show them that you disapprove of what they have done:
John couldn’t get the guy to cooperate and so I had to call and chew him out.
chew something ↔ over phrasal verb
to think carefully about something for a period of time:
Let me chew it over for a few days.
chew something ↔ up phrasal verb
1. to damage or destroy something by tearing it into small pieces:
Be careful if you use that video recorder. It tends to chew tapes up.
2. to bite something many times with your teeth so that you can make it smaller or softer and swallow it:
The dog’s chewed up my slippers again.
chew2 noun [countable]
1. the act of biting something many times with your teeth
2. a sweet that you chew
3. a piece of tobacco that you chew but do not swallow
| I |
verb Language: Old English
Origin: ceowan
1. [intransitive and transitive] to bite food several times before swallowing it:Origin: ceowan
chew at/on
2. [intransitive and transitive] to bite something continuously in order to taste it or because you are nervous
chew on
chew your lip/nails
chew gum/tobacco
3. chew the cud if a cow or sheep chews the cud, it keeps biting on food it has brought up from its stomach
4. chew the fat informal to have a long friendly conversation
⇨ bite off more than you can chew at bite1(10)
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chew on something phrasal verb
informal to think carefully about something for a period of time
chew somebody ↔ out phrasal verb American English informal
to talk angrily to someone in order to show them that you disapprove of what they have done:
chew something ↔ over phrasal verb
to think carefully about something for a period of time:
chew something ↔ up phrasal verb
1. to damage or destroy something by tearing it into small pieces:
2. to bite something many times with your teeth so that you can make it smaller or softer and swallow it:
| II |
noun [countable]1. the act of biting something many times with your teeth
2. a sweet that you chew
3. a piece of tobacco that you chew but do not swallow
