Definition of "chew" in English

verb

1. 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.

   • Make sure to chew thoroughly, and don't talk with your mouth full!
   • The steak was tough to chew as it had been cooked too long.
   • 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?

2. To grind, tear, or otherwise degrade or demolish something with teeth or as with teeth.

   • He keeps his feed in steel drums to prevent the mice from chewing holes in the feed-sacks.
   • The harsh desert wind and sand had chewed the stump into ragged strips of wood.

3. (informal) To think about something; to ponder; to chew over.

   • The professor stood at the blackboard, chalk in hand, and chewed the question the student had asked.

noun

1. The act of chewing; mastication with the mouth.

   • I popped the gum into my mouth and gave it a chew.

2. Level of chewiness.

3. A small sweet, such as a taffy, that is eaten by chewing.

   • Phillip purchased a bag of licorice chews at the drugstore.

4. (informal, uncountable) Chewing tobacco.

   • The school had banned chew and smokes from the school grounds, even for adults.

5. (countable) A plug or wad of chewing tobacco; chaw or a chaw.

   • The ballplayers sat on the bench watching the rain, glumly working their chews.
   • The first time he chewed tobacco, he swallowed his chew and got extremely sick.

6. (uncountable, informal) The condition of something being torn or ground up mechanically.