chaw
/tʃɔː
/informal, chiefly North American
noun
1An act of chewing something, especially something not intended to be swallowed: enjoying a good chaw...
- We could never resist the temptations of a good chaw without your help.
- It's not a regular habit, but I like a good chaw when I'm hiking or sitting around a campfire in the woods.
1.1Something chewed, especially a quid of tobacco: a chaw of tobacco...
- He had two great mounds of curls sticking out of his hat on either side of his head, and the biggest chaw of tobacco in his cheek that I've ever seen.
- This topped sneaking a chaw of tobacco behind a school friend's garage, or hanging out with the glue-heads.
- I worked to keep the wheel steady, watching as his lips contorted and then expelled a wet brown plug of used chaw.
verb [with object]
Chew (something, especially tobacco): now just about anyone can don stetsons and chaw tobacco [no object]: he passed the time chawing and spitting...
- On an early visit, I paid $37.50 for the privilege of chawing my way through four reasonably tasty slices of porterhouse, which is several dollars more than you'll pay for a superior piece of beef down the street.
- This means they shoot squirrels, chaw and spit, and say ‘dang’ a lot.
- Some men drink to forget their anger and hurt, others smoke or chaw when their nervous but I guess, with the exception of last night, Selby sucks a lemon instead.
Origin
Late Middle English (as a verb): variant of chew.
- (as) deaf as a post
- ASDIC
- as different as (or like) chalk and cheese
- (as) drunk as a lord (or skunk)
- (as) dry as a bone
- (as) dry as a Pommy's towel
- (as) dry as dust
- (as) dull as dishwater (or ditchwater)
- -ase
- ASEAN
- (as) easy as falling off a log
- (as) easy as pie
- as easy as winking
- (as) easy (or simple) as ABC
- a second thought
- aseismic
- asepsis
- aseptic
- aseptically
- asequia
- asexual
- asexualise
- asexuality
- asexualization
- asexualize