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The Oxford English Dictionary 's earliest citation for "Chew the fat" is from 1885 in a book by J Brunlees Patterson called Life in the Ranks of the British Army in India. He implied it was a kind of general grumbling and bending of the ears of junior officers to stave off boredom, a typical part of army life. [8] Patterson also uses "chew the ...
- What Does Chew The Fat Mean?
- Origins of The Idiom Chew The Fat
- Let’s Review
The idiom chew the fat means to converse idly, to make small talk, or to spread gossip. The idiomatic expression chew the fatinvokes the imagery of jaws working furiously in an opening and closing motion and has often been associated with spreading stories about events or other people. For example: 1. We spent a few extra moments just chewing the f...
As you can see in the nGram, the phrase chew the fat wasn’t in general speech or writing before the late 1800s, which completely destroys the most widely spread myth of its inceptions. It likely originated from the more common expression chew the rag, as we explore below through etymological evidence.
Despite the many logical myths surrounding the origins of chew the fat, it is a fairly recent term related to the older phrase, chew the rag, and is related to British military slang meaning to complain or grumble about things. Today it means to sit around and chat, gossip, or complain and is a way to describe the passing of time through conversati...
- English Teacher
Apr 9, 2022 · Origin. Chewing the fat is speculated to be something that was done at leisure by the North American Indians. Farmers in Britain would chew on pork fat when sitting idle or chatting with other farmers. It is also speculated to be an activity that sailors would do. They would have hardened and salted animal fat, which would provide nutrients ...
Chew the fat. English Idiom. Meaning: Engage in casual or leisurely conversation, often about unimportant or trivial matters. It's a way to catch up with friends or family without any particular agenda. Origin: The phrase 'chew the fat' is believed to have originated from sailors in the 19th century who would spend long hours at sea.
Chew the fat. Idle talk or chatter that first appears as a British military expression for grumbling or complaining during the late 19th century. It was very quickly adopted on both sides of the Atlantic and today the expression is decidedly more popular in America. Its origin as literally chewing on fat, bacon or salt pork has been largely ...
Sep 10, 2024 · Today, ‘Chew the Fat’ means having a long, relaxed chat. It shows how talking and chewing fat both take time and effort. This change highlights the creativity of language. It turns real actions into ways we describe our world. This idiom is a perfect example of how we use language to make our communication richer.
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Where did the phrase 'chew the fat' come from?
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Why did farmers chew on pork fat?
Another speculation is the fact that the phrase originates from the actual movement of the mouth when chewing fat, which resembles when friends get together to gossip. Both activities require the mouth to move for a long time. In 1885, J. Brunlees Patterson used it in his literary work called “ Life in the Ranks of the British Army in India.”.
