Phrasal verb
chew out
Definition
phrasal verb. to talk to someone in an angry way because they did something wrong. You use this when a person in charge is very upset with you.
phrasal verb. to reprimand or scold someone severely and at length. This phrasal verb is informal and typically implies a power imbalance, such as a boss to an employee.
Examples
“The coach will chew out the team if they lose.”
“My boss chewed me out for twenty minutes because I forgot to send the report.”
“The sergeant proceeded to chew out the recruits for their lack of discipline during the morning drills, leaving them visibly shaken.”
Examples
simple
“The coach will chew out the team if they lose.”
contextual
“My boss chewed me out for twenty minutes because I forgot to send the report.”
complex
“The sergeant proceeded to chew out the recruits for their lack of discipline during the morning drills, leaving them visibly shaken.”
Usage
The object can be placed between 'chew' and 'out'.
Teaching tip
contrast with 'scold' (formal) or 'tell off' (neutral/common); 'chew out' suggests a more aggressive or loud verbal attack.
Pitfall
He chewed out to me.
He chewed me out.
this is a transitive phrasal verb and does not take the preposition 'to' before the object.
Phrasal verb
Particles
out
Separability
optional
Pattern
chew + (object) + out
Synonyms
Antonyms
Grammar
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/chew-out