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chew the cud

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cud

[kuhd]
–noun
1. the portion of food that a ruminant returns from the first stomach to the mouth to chew a second time.
2. Dialect. quid 1 .
3. chew one's or the cud, Informal. to meditate or ponder; ruminate.

Origin:
bef. 1000; ME; OE cudu, var. of cwiodu, cwidu; akin to OHG quiti glue, Skt jatu resin, gum. See quid 1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To chew the cud
chew   (chōō)   
v.   chewed, chew·ing, chews

v.   tr.
  1. To bite and grind with the teeth; masticate.

  2. To meditate on; ponder: chew a problem over.

v.   intr.
  1. To make a crushing and grinding motion with the teeth.

  2. To cogitate; meditate: chewed on the difficulties ahead.

  3. Informal To use chewing tobacco.

n.  
  1. The act of chewing.

  2. Something held in the mouth and chewed, especially a plug of tobacco. See Regional Note at chaw.

Phrasal Verb(s):
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.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

cud 
O.E. cudu "cud," earlier cwudu, from PIE base *gwet- "resin, gum."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: cud
Pronunciation: 'k&d, 'kud
Function: noun
: food brought up into the mouth by a ruminating animal from its first stomach to be chewedagain
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Idioms & Phrases

chew the cud

Also, chew over. Ponder over, meditate, as in John tends to chew the cud before he answers, or Let me chew that over and let you know. The first term, first recorded in 1382, transfers the appearance of a patiently ruminating cow to a person deep in thought. The variant was first recorded in 1696.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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