Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

chew

chew (chu) , transitive verb

[As ceówan, akin to Dutch kauwen, German kauen. Compare Chaw, Jaw.]

1.
To bite and grind with the teeth; to masticate.
2.
To ruminate mentally; to meditate on.
He chews revenge, abjuring his offense. — Prior
Every beast the parteth the hoof, and cleaveth the cleft into two claws, and cheweth the cud among the beasts, that ye shall eat. — Deut. xxiv. 6
Collocations (1)
To chew the cud , to chew the food over again, as a cow; to ruminate; hence, to meditate.

Chew , intransitive verb

To perform the action of biting and grinding with the teeth; to ruminate; to meditate.
old politicians chew wisdom past. — Pope

Chew , noun

That which is chewed; that which is held in the mouth at once; a cud. [Law]