[choo] 
| 1. | to crush or grind with the teeth; masticate. |
| 2. | to crush, damage, injure, etc., as if by chewing (often fol. by up): The faulty paper feeder chewed the letters up. |
| 3. | to make by or as if by chewing: The puppy chewed a hole in my slipper. |
| 4. | to meditate on; consider deliberately (often fol. by over): He chewed the problem over in his mind. |
| 5. | to perform the act of crushing or grinding with the teeth. |
| 6. | Informal. to chew tobacco. |
| 7. | to meditate. |
| 8. | an act or instance of chewing. |
| 9. | something chewed or intended for chewing: a chew of tobacco; taffy chews. |
| 10. | chew out, Slang. to scold harshly: The sergeant chewed out the recruits. |
| 11. | chew the fat, Informal. to converse at length in a relaxed manner; chat: They liked to sit around chewing the fat. Also, chew the rag. |
| chew (chōō) v. chewed, chew·ing, chews v. tr.
chew out Slang To reprimand; scold. Idiom(s): chew the cud Slang To ponder over; meditate. Idiom(s): chew the fat/rag Slang To talk together in a friendly, leisurely way; chat at length. [Middle English cheuen, from Old English cēowan.] chew'a·ble adj., chew'er n. |
chew out
Scold harshly, as in Dad will chew you out for taking the car without permission. Originating in the military, this slangy term began to be used during World War I and soon spread to civilian life. Several vulgar versions, such as chew someone's ass out, should be avoided in polite speech. Also see eat out, def. 2.