Idioms for chew

    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 of chew

before 1000; Middle English chewen, Old English cēowan; cognate with Old High German kiuwan (German kauen)

OTHER WORDS FROM chew

chew·er, noun un·chewed, adjective well-chewed, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH chew

chews choose

Words nearby chew

chevron, chevronel, chevrotain, chevy, chevy chase, chew, chew out, chew over, chew the cud, chew the fat, chew up

Words related to chew the fat

chatter, consider, bicker, contest, deliberate, question, wrangle, oppose, answer, prate, cackle, babble, jaw, converse, burble, yap, prattle, blab, gab, commune

British Dictionary definitions for chew the fat

chew
/ (tʃuː) /

verb

to work the jaws and teeth in order to grind (food); masticate
to bite repeatedly she chewed her nails anxiously
(intr) to use chewing tobacco
chew the fat or chew the rag slang
  1. to argue over a point
  2. to talk idly; gossip

noun

the act of chewing
something that is chewed a chew of tobacco
See also chew out, chew over, chew up

Derived forms of chew

chewable, adjective chewer, noun

Word Origin for chew

Old English ceowan; related to Old High German kiuwan, Dutch kauwen, Latin gingīva a gum

Idioms and Phrases with chew the fat (1 of 2)

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.

Idioms and Phrases with chew the fat (2 of 2)

chew