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<P>Maybe a variation of "chowing down on", though how "ch" went to "m" is beyond me.<BR>(Possibly a mix-up with the word "maw"?)<BR></P></DIV>
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<DIV></DIV>From: <I>Michael Quinion <wordseditor@WORLDWIDEWORDS.ORG></I><BR>Reply-To: <I>wordseditor@worldwidewords.org</I><BR>To: <I>ADS-L@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU</I><BR>Subject: <I>Mowing down on</I><BR>Date: <I>Wed, 3 Jan 2007 12:38:41 -0000</I><BR>---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------<BR>Sender: American Dialect Society <ADS-L@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU><BR>Poster: Michael Quinion <wordseditor@WORLDWIDEWORDS.ORG><BR>Organization: World Wide Words<BR>Subject: Mowing down on<BR>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------<BR><BR>A subscriber asks about the phrase "mowing down on", meaning to eat<BR>voraciously. It isn't in my standard references, in
DARE, or in the ADS<BR>archives, but there are a lot of examples on Google. My questioner lives<BR>in Texas but was brought up in Ontario. He says he pronounces "mow" like<BR>"cow". Can anyone provide the background to this expression for him?<BR><BR><BR>--<BR>Michael Quinion<BR>Editor, World Wide Words<BR>E-mail: wordseditor@worldwidewords.org<BR>Web: http://www.worldwidewords.org<BR><BR>------------------------------------------------------------<BR>The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org<BR></FONT></BLOCKQUOTE></div><br clear=all><hr> <a href="http://g.msn.com/8HMAENUS/2749??PS=47575" target="_top">Get live scores and news about your team: Add the Live.com Football Page</a> </html>
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