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chew the fat

 - 6 dictionary results

chew

  [choo]
Use chew the fat in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
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.
–verb (used without object)
5. to perform the act of crushing or grinding with the teeth.
6. Informal. to chew tobacco.
7. to meditate.
–noun
8. an act or instance of chewing.
9. something chewed or intended for chewing: a chew of tobacco; taffy chews.
—Verb phrase
10. chew out, Slang. to scold harshly: The sergeant chewed out the recruits.
—Idiom
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.
Origin:
bef. 1000; ME chewen, OE cēowan; c. OHG kiuwan (G kauen)

Related forms:
chewer, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To chew the fat
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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Slang Dictionary
chew (sth)

  1. tv.
    to talk something over. : Why don't we do lunch sometime and chew this over?
  2. tv.
    to think something over. : I'll have to chew it over for a while. I'm not sure now.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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chew the fat

and chew the rag
  1. tv.
    to chat or gossip. : Put your carcass over on the chair, and let's chew the fat for a while. , We chewed the rag for a while and then went out to eat.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Word Origin & History

chew 
O.E. ceowan "to bite, chew," from W.Gmc. *keuwjanan, from PIE base *gjeu- "to chew." To chew (someone) out is military slang from World War II. Chewing gum is 1850, Amer.Eng., originally hardened secretions of the spruce tree.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Idioms & Phrases

chew the fat

Also, chew the rag. Chat in a friendly, leisurely way, as in Let's get together for coffee and chew the fat, or John and Dave spend hours just chewing the rag. Before the 1880s in Britain, chew the fat meant "to grumble or complain," and chew the rag also has been used in this way. Today both expressions are largely synonyms for a friendly talk or gossip session. Why this idiom uses fat and rag is not known, but some speculate that fat refers to juicy items of gossip and rag to ladies' sewing circles and the cloth they worked on while chatting.

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