chew the scenery
To display excessive emotion or to act in an exaggerated manner while performing; to be melodramatic; to be flamboyant.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“The actor tends to chew the scenery in every movie.”
“She likes to chew the scenery during her big solo on stage.”
“You chew the scenery whenever you play the king in this show.”
“The director told the lead actor to stop chewing the scenery and act more naturally.”
“Even though the script was quite serious, the villain started to chew the scenery by shouting every line and waving his arms wildly.”
“I enjoyed the musical, but the main singer began to chew the scenery so much that it became hard to focus on the story.”
“While the play was well-written, the lead performer chose to chew the scenery, turning a subtle drama into an exhausting display of melodrama.”
first recorded 19th c.
The expression was first recorded in 1894 within the novel Coeur d'Alene, authored by Mary Hallock Foote. According to the Random House Historical Dictionary of American Slang, this instance remains the earliest known reference to the phrase.
- 01
bite off more than one can chew
To try to do too much; to take on or attempt more than one is capable of doing.
- 02
change of scenery
A movement from one location to another.
- 03
chew off
To reprimand, to scold
- 04
chew on
To consider, to ponder.
- 05
chew the cud
To meditate or ponder before answering; to be deep in thought; to ruminate.
- 06
chew the meat and spit out the bones
To take in a great deal of information and selectively disregard some of it as invalid or inapplicable.
- 07
chew up
To ruin (especially land), by digging.
- 08
walk and chew gum at the same time
To do two normally trivial tasks at the same time; to exhibit basic competence or task-management skills.
Last updated August 10, 2026