more chins than a Chinese phone book
- idiom
- Offensive
:
tener mucha papada
- The comedian joked that he had more chins than a Chinese phone book.
Examples
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He laughed and said he now has more chins than a Chinese phone book after quitting the gym.
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He has more chins than a Chinese phone book!
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After seeing my reflection, I realized I had more chins than a Chinese phone book.
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Those holiday snacks gave me more chins than a Chinese phone book.
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After seeing my reflection, I realized I had more chins than a Chinese phone book.
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He laughed and said he now has more chins than a Chinese phone book after quitting the gym.
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Those holiday snacks gave me more chins than a Chinese phone book.
Synonyms
4
2.7
A layer of fat under the chin that looks like a second chin
A person who has extra fat under the chin that makes several folds
Having extra soft skin under the chin that hangs down slightly
Antonyms
How Overweight
- Offensive
126
3.8
1
2.4
- Informal
61
1.0
∞
1.0
60
1.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
more + chin + than + a + Chinese + phone + book
This is a humorous hyperbolic simile whose meaning ('has many chins') follows directly from the literal parts: 'more chins than' + a large, densely listed object ('Chinese phone book'). Although it relies on the cultural image of a very large phone book, the comparative/compositional logic is straightforward and cross-linguistically recognizable, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words will readily infer the intended meaning.
Etymology
The expression more chins than a Chinese phone book comes from a joking image: Chinese phone books were very thick with many names, and the many pages are imagined like layers of chins. So the phrase means 'having a lot of chins'.