eat crow

Cultural  

1. To suffer a humiliating experience: “The organizers had to eat crow when the fair they had sworn would attract thousands drew scarcely a hundred people.” The phrase probably refers to the fact that crow meat tastes terrible.

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eat crow Idioms  

1. Also,. Be forced to admit a humiliating mistake, as in When the reporter got the facts all wrong, his editor made him eat crow. The first term's origin has been lost, although a story relates that it involved a War of 1812 encounter in which a British officer made an American soldier eat part of a crow he had shot in British territory. Whether or not it is true, the fact remains that crow meat tastes terrible. The two variants originated in Britain. Dirt obviously tastes bad. And humble pie alludes to a pie made from umbles, a deer's undesirable innards (heart, liver, entrails). [Early 1800s] Also see eat one's words.

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Example Sentences

“I’ve had to eat crow, because it became big all over the world.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 23, 2026

When Watters responded, “This is garbage,” Graham was forced to eat crow.

From Salon • Apr. 2, 2023

The Minnesota Vikings smacked the Philadelphia Eagles in a 38-20 victory— with Kirk Cousins making linebacker Zach Brown have to eat crow for calling the quarterback the “weakest link” of Minnesota’s offense.

From Washington Times • Oct. 13, 2019

“I have indicated that I’ll happily eat crow if Louisiana’s voters prove me wrong, and I hope they do,” he said in a statement.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 13, 2017

I knew that having to eat crow when you were once proud and right was like swallowing a hunk of tough, chewy crow meat that wasn’t about to go down easy.

From "One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia