chew

== English == === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /tʃuː/ (Standard Southern British) IPA(key): /tʃʉw/ (Wales, Canada) IPA(key): /tʃɪʊ̯/ (US, Canada) enPR: cho͞o, IPA(key): /t͡ʃ(j)u/ Rhymes: -uː === Etymology 1 === From Middle English chewen, from Old English ċēowan, from Proto-West Germanic *keuwan, from Proto-Germanic *kewwaną, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵyewh₁-. Cognate with West Frisian kôgje, Low German käwwen, Dutch kauwen, German kauen; also Latin gingīva (“gums”), Tocharian B śuwaṃ (“to eat”), Polish żuć (“to chew”), Persian جویدن (javidan), Pashto ژول (žovạl, “to bite, gnaw”). ==== Verb ==== chew (third-person singular simple present chews, present participle chewing, simple past chewed, past participle chewed or (rare) chewn) To crush with the teeth by repeated closing and opening of the jaws; done to food to soften it and break it down by the action of saliva before it is swallowed. 1971-79, Journal of Glenn T. Seaborg And gruesome they areː We find cattle still alive with hindquarters chewn off, still alive with their eyes chewn out, their ears chewn off, their noses and faces chewn till they look like (a) Hamburger, their tails hanging in shreds. Or, we find them after a slow and cruel death. Can you understand why cattlemen will shoot YOUR dog if he is seen wandering on ranchland? To grind, tear, or otherwise degrade or demolish something with teeth or as with teeth. (informal) To think about something; to ponder; to chew over. Ellipsis of chew tobacco. Coordinate terms: dip, smoke ===== Synonyms ===== (crush food with teeth prior to swallowing): bite, chavel, chomp, crunch, masticate (degrade or demolish as if with teeth): grind, pulverize, rip, shred, tear (think about): contemplate, ruminate, mull, muse, ponder See also Thesaurus:ponder ===== Derived terms ===== ===== Descendants ===== → Pennsylvania German: tschaae ===== Translations ===== === Etymology 2 === From Middle English chew, cheu, icheu, from Old English *ċēaw, *ġeċēaw (“chewing”), from Proto-West Germanic *kauw, *gakauw (“chewing”), from Proto-Germanic *kewwaną (“to chew”). Cognate with obsolete Dutch kauw (“chewing”), Dutch gekauw (“chewing”), West Frisian gekau (“chewing”). ==== Noun ==== chew (countable and uncountable, plural chews) The act of chewing; mastication with the mouth. Level of chewiness. A small sweet, such as a taffy, that is eaten by chewing. (informal, uncountable) Chewing tobacco. (countable) A plug or wad of chewing tobacco; chaw or a chaw. (uncountable, informal) The condition of something being torn or ground up mechanically. ===== Derived terms ===== ===== Translations ===== === See also === pa chew cheng