IdiomFood & Drink
English
EnglishTo chew the fat
Meaning: To chat idly and at length.
Example: “The two old friends sat on the porch chewing the fat until sunset.”
Origin: Sailors and farmhands once gnawed tough salted fat during slow, talkative hours; the leisurely chewing matched the leisurely talk.
Equivalents in other languages
Turkish: Havadan sudan konuşmak Literally: To talk of weather and water
Afrikaans: Koeitjies en kalfies Literally: Little cows and calves
More English idioms
- By the skin of your teeth By the narrowest possible margin.
- To rain on someone's parade To spoil someone's plans or happy moment.
- To have a chip on your shoulder To harbor a grudge or a defensive sense of grievance.
- To cost an arm and a leg To be extremely expensive.
- To burn the midnight oil To work late into the night.
- Once in a blue moon Very rarely.
Explore another collection: Proverbs
Short sayings of timeless wisdom from more than 50 cultures, each with its meaning and origin.
- Keep from the anger of a great man. Avoid provoking the powerful, whose wrath can do you real harm.
- He that is angry without a cause must be pleased without amends. Anger without real cause deserves no apology to soothe it.
- None knows the weight of another's burden. No one can truly feel how heavy another person's troubles are.
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