chew

chew — verb

1. to break food down into smaller pieces by moving it between your teeth until it

1.verbtransitive / intransitiveB2
Definition

to break food down into smaller pieces by moving it between your teeth until it is soft enough to swallow

Example

Aiko chewed her steak slowly before swallowing it.

The old dog sat in the corner, happily chewing on a bone.

intransitive pattern: chew on + object

Common collocations
  • chew food
  • chew meat
  • chew gum
  • chew thoroughly
  • chew slowly
  • chew carefully
Synonyms
  • masticate

    formal and technical; used mainly in medical or scientific writing

  • grind

    emphasises the pressing and crushing motion rather than the repeated opening and closing of the jaw

Antonyms
  • swallow

    the act that follows chewing — you chew first, then swallow

Grammar Patterns

chew + object

chew + on + object

chew + adverb (e.g. thoroughly, slowly)

Usage Note

Both transitive (chew your food) and intransitive (chew on a bone) patterns are common. The preposition 'on' is used when the object is the item being chewed rather than the result of chewing.

Common Mistakes

She bit the gum all through the movie.
She chewed the gum all through the movie.
'bite' is a single cutting action with the teeth; 'chew' involves repeated crushing motions.

2. to hold something in your mouth and bite it repeatedly — often from anxiety, dee

2.verbtransitive / intransitiveB2
Definition

to hold something in your mouth and bite it repeatedly — often from anxiety, deep concentration, or simply to taste the flavour

Example

Nadia chewed her pencil nervously while waiting for the exam to begin.

chew + object for nervous habit

The puppy keeps chewing on the legs of the wooden chairs.

Common collocations
  • chew your nails
  • chew your lip
  • chew a pencil
  • chew on something
  • chew nervously
  • chew anxiously
Synonyms
  • gnaw

    suggests persistent biting at something hard; more common for animals than people

  • chomp

    informal; suggests noisier, more vigorous biting

Grammar Patterns

chew + object (nails, pencil, lip)

chew + on + object

Usage Note

Common objects for this sense include fingernails, pencils, pens, lips, and the inside of the cheek. The action is often unconscious and driven by anxiety or deep thought.

Common Mistakes

The puppy bit on my shoe all afternoon.
The puppy chewed on my shoe all afternoon.
for repeated gnawing over time, use 'chew on'; 'bite' implies a single quick action.
Phrasal verbs

chew out

phrasal verb

To angrily tell someone that they have done something wrong.

My boss chewed me out for missing the meeting.

Did your mom chew you out for breaking the vase?

chew over

phrasal verb

To think about something carefully for a long time.

The team chewed over the proposal for two hours.

I need to chew over your offer before deciding.

Idioms

bite off more than you can chew

idiom

to try to do something that is too difficult or take on more responsibility than you can handle

Ravi agreed to organise the whole conference by himself, but he may have bitten off more than he can chew.

Taking five advanced courses this semester sounds like biting off more than you can chew.

chew the fat

idiom

to have a long, informal conversation with someone about unimportant topics

The two friends sat on the porch chewing the fat until well after midnight.

We spent the whole afternoon just chewing the fat over coffee.

chew — noun

Word family

  • chewy
    adjectiveB2
  • chewer
    nounC1
  • chewing gum
    nounA2
  • chewable
    adjectiveB2

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

Chew is the everyday word for crushing food with your teeth in repeated motions. Bite refers to a single action of cutting or seizing with the teeth — you bite into an apple but then chew the pieces. Gnaw is used for persistent biting at something hard over time, most often for animals (a dog gnawing a bone) or for nervous habits (gnawing your nails). Masticate is the formal, technical equivalent of chew, found mainly in medical, dental, or scientific writing about digestion. Chomp is informal and suggests chewing noisily or vigorously, often with enjoyment (chomping on a burger). A parent might tell a child 'chew your food properly'; a dentist might instruct a patient to 'masticate on both sides'; and a friend might describe someone 'chomping through a steak dinner'.

bite ↗gnawmasticatechomp

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • chew on something
  • chew your way through
  • chew each bite

Prepositions

Etymology

Proto-Indo-EuropeanProto-GermanicOld EnglishMiddle EnglishEnglish

The verb chew comes from Old English cēowan, meaning 'to chew or gnaw'. It traces back to the Proto-Germanic root *kewwaną and further to the Proto-Indo-European root *ǵyew-, which carried the same meaning of biting and grinding. Related words in other Germanic languages include German kauen and Dutch kauwen. The basic sense of crushing food with teeth has remained unchanged for thousands of years.