Idiom idiom
bite off more than you can chew
Meaning
Take on a project that you cannot finish
Examples
“Don't bite off more than you can chew with that big project.”
“He realized he had bitten off more than he could chew when he agreed to organize the entire conference by himself.”
“Ambitious entrepreneurs often bite off more than they can chew by attempting to enter three different international markets simultaneously without sufficient staff or funding.”
Origin
disputed origin
disputed origin
19th-century America, commonly linked to taking too big a plug of chewing tobacco.
Last updated June 7, 2026