to chew up
10
7.1
- phrasal verb
- /tʃu ʌp/
- Informal
- You get chewed up and spit out if you're not confident and if you're not strong and assertive.
- get chewed up
Examples
-
That his training was unbelievably intense to the point where he would just just chew out, chew up and destroy all training partners.
-
He might chew up your good shoes," Terry's father said.
Fiction book (1998) -
At what point did you feel most chewed up and spit out?
-
I'm gonna enjoy watching you get chewed up.
-
He's been chewed up about it ever since.
-
This town, it chews you up, then spits you out.
Fiction book (1994) -
You're about to get chewed up like a fucking cow!
-
"The mother," I said, "was she fat?" The other morning, in the taco place, I'd seen a fat woman chew up a quesadilla and dribble it into her baby's mouth.
Fiction book (1999) -
It would charcoal broil you with breath of fire, chew you up, vomit you out, and burn you again before swallowing you once and for all.
Fiction book (1996) -
The coach chewed up the players for their lack of effort during the game.
Synonyms
116
4.6
To give someone a long serious talk that warns or scolds them about what they did
78
5.6
Suddenly say angry things about someone by speaking or writing
58
8.1
To angrily tell someone off
54
2.2
Speak angrily to someone who has done something wrong
36
7.2
Scold someone angrily and severely
33
6.1
To tell someone they did something wrong, usually by a person in charge
25
6.9
To tell someone firmly that you do not approve of their actions
25
7.0
Scold someone angrily in front of others
21
7.0
Tell someone you are unhappy with what they did
20
6.3
To scold someone strongly for a mistake
13
6.9
Tear something into many pieces or say very bad things about it
11
8.2
To criticize someone very strongly and angrily
8
6.7
Shout loudly at someone because they did something wrong
6
7.9
Scold someone very strongly for a mistake
4
9.8
To scold someone very harshly
4
7.9
To tell someone strongly that they have done something wrong, often in front of others
3
8.0
To criticize someone or something very strongly in public
3
8.8
To scold someone strongly for something they did wrong
3
7.3
To severely criticize someone or something
3
6.3
To angrily tell someone they did something wrong
1
6.8
Tell someone angrily that they did something wrong
1
8.6
To scold someone very strongly for a mistake
1
8.5
Criticize or attack someone strongly
1
8.0
To speak to someone in a sudden angry way without good reason
1
9.1
To speak angrily to someone and criticize them
1
9.9
To tell someone angrily that you do not like what they did
1
9.9
To criticize someone angrily using harsh words
1
8.1
To tell someone angrily that they did something wrong
Tell someone angrily that you are upset with them
To attack someone with angry words
Antonyms
How Harsh
3
8.0
- Informal
10
7.1
54
2.2
- Formal
33
6.1
653
3.3
Surface Forms
Morphology
The literal verb 'chew' (to bite/grind) plus the particle 'up' (completion/consumption) yields a clear image of something being consumed or destroyed, so a learner who knows the parts can plausibly infer a meaning like 'use up' or 'damage'. However, its frequent metaphorical extension to abstract resources (time, data, memory) and occasional sense of causing problems is an extension that is not fully predictable without exposure, so it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Chew up (meaning 'to criticize or scold someone harshly') may come from the picture of being bitten and torn by teeth. One popular story says people imagined the verb chew doing the damage with words, so chew up came to mean 'to scold' or 'tear someone down'.