Chew Chewing Chewed Tʃuː Difficult Teeth Verb Bre

• after the operation you may find it difficult to chew and swallow.
• teeth designed for chewing meat
• he is always chewing gum.
• rosa chewed on her lip and stared at the floor.

chew

1. to bite food into small pieces in your mouth with your teeth to make it easier to swallow
• After the operation you may find it difficult to chew and swallow.
• teeth designed for chewing meat
• He is always chewing gum.
2. to bite something continuously, for example because you are nervous or to taste it
• Rosa chewed on her lip and stared at the floor.
• The dog was chewing on a bone.
• to chew your nails
3. to try to do too much, or something that is too difficult
4. to have a long friendly talk with somebody about something
• Randall stayed chewing the fat for a while.
• They met up once a year to chew the fat about the old days.

Extra Examples

• She was chewing at her lower lip.
• The baby chewed on a piece of bread.
• Chew your food up well before you swallow it.

Verb Forms

• present simple I / you / we / they chew
• he / she / it chews
• past simple chewed
• past participle chewed
• -ing form chewing

Word Origin

• Old English cēowan, of West Germanic origin; related to Dutch kauwen and German kauen.