Chewy

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ˈt͡ʃuː.i/

Definitions

1. Having a firm, dense texture that requires prolonged chewing before it can be swallowed
2. Having a texture that necessitates significant mastication before consumption
3. Possessing a density that makes it necessary to chew for a longer period of time before eating

Etymology: Chewy is about as plain as English etymology gets: it is simply "chew" with the suffix "-y" attached. The suffix, which turns a noun or verb into an adjective meaning "characterised by" or "having the quality of," arrived in English from Old English "-iġ," and the verb it attaches to goes back to a Proto-Germanic root that also produced words for the act of chewing in several related languages. The root of "chew" traces back to Proto-Indo-European, though the chain of descent is more tangled than the modern spelling suggests. It came into English through Proto-Germanic and Proto-West Germanic forms, and its Old English ancestor was a verb for grinding food with the teeth. Over centuries the word settled into its present sense, and "chewy" followed naturally from it, describing food, such as toffee or bread, that needs a good deal of work from the jaw before it can be swallowed.

Synonyms: tough, rubbery, gummy, tenacious, resilient

Antonyms: soft, tender, easy, mushy, fragile