chow1
[chou]Informal.
- food, especially hearty dishes or a meal.
Show More
- chow down, to eat; eat a meal, especially the main meal of the day: In the army we usually chow down at 6 p.m.
Show More
Origin of chow1
chow2
[chou]
Show More
Origin of chow2
short form
Chow1
[chou; Chinese joh]
- Chou.
Show More
Chow2
[chou]
- a contemptuous term used to refer to a Chinese person.
Show More
Origin of Chow2
First recorded in 1870–75; special use of chow1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for chow
Contemporary Examples
I minimize time in crowds and chow halls and take meals to go more often than not.
They might, at least, let us chow down on a few Big Macs from time to time without putting on the pounds.
These Diet Lessons From Olympians Will Help You Lose Weight and Look AwesomeJenna A. Bell
February 15, 2014
I love fried rice (Yeah)/ I love noodles (Yeah)/ I love Chow Mein/ Chow Mo-Mo-Mo-Mo Mein.
The 44-year-old stars in Jason Wu's fall 2013 campaign, photographed at legendary New York restaurant Mr. Chow.
Anna Wintour's First Tweet Is About DOMA; Wendy Davis's Red Filibuster SneakersThe Fashion Beast Team
June 27, 2013
What better way to juice up than to chow down on some of that blood dripping off the just-dead animal hanging outside your hut?
Historical Examples
He yelled from the bridge down at the deck, "Aren't we going to have any chow this evening at all?"
End of the TetherJoseph Conrad
"Forget it for now, Wade, and get that chow on," suggested Fuller.
Islands of SpaceJohn W Campbell
"Any time and place you like, if you've got the chow with you," replied the trainman.
Uncle Sam's Boys in the RanksH. Irving Hancock
"I'm going to watch my chow (food) after this," insisted Green.
Uncle Sam's Boys in the PhilippinesH. Irving Hancock
Soldiers would not be soldiers if they did not complain of their "chow."
Woodrow Wilson and the World WarCharles Seymour
chow
- informal food
- short for chow-chow (def. 1)
Show More
See also chow down
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for chow
n.
"food," 1856, American English (originally in California), from Chinese pidgin English chow-chow (1795) "food," reduplication of Chinese cha or tsa "mixed." The dog breed of the same name is from 1886, of unknown origin, but some suggest a link to the Chinese tendency to see dogs as edible.
Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper