When “To Eat Something” Means to Do Well

Hello, you have A Way with Words.

Thank you so much.

Congratulations.

She was waiting to say that.

She was waiting for the setup.

I was.

This is Angela calling from Albany Township, Maine.

Hey, Angela.

Well, I wanted to talk to you both because I know you really enjoy slang and what all the youths are saying these days.

And one of the words I wanted to talk to you guys about was to eat.

Okay.

We’re there.

Talk to us.

We’ll be right over.

Right?

So I was born in the mid-80s and growing up, we would say you ate it.

And that meant your face hit the pavement or you were doing an activity.

You fell and you, you know, mouth to ground.

But the kids these days are saying eat in a positive way.

So I was working on a show with some younger actors and I kept hearing them say like, yes, she ate.

And I was like, she ate.

And they’re like, yeah, she’s eating this choreography.

She ate that song like she is eating.

And I was like, OK, that’s interesting.

And one of them told me a haircut I did was awesome.

And they said, you ate that haircut.

And I was like, thank you, because I’m assuming that’s a compliment.

But I just thought it was really interesting.

So, Angela, do you cut hair for actors then?

I do, yeah.

That’s my job.

Really?

You cut hair for actors.

This is like we’re talking regional theater, traveling theater.

What are you doing?

The most recent was the Mean Girls tour that’s out right now.

Okay.

But, yeah.

Wow.

So I do hair and wigs for Broadway shows and different tours around the country.

Oh, how cool.

And when you’re really good at it, they say, boy, Angela, you really ate that.

Yeah.

They were like, you ate that haircut.

And I was like, thank you.

You ate that wig.

Let me spit this out.

So instead of a face plant, it’s something that you’re really good at.

Yeah.

And it made me think I was texting my friend Tim, who turned me on to your podcast.

And I was like, it’s just interesting because now as I think of it, you can be eaten up by an audience and they’re loving everything you’re doing.

They’re savoring it.

Or they can eat you alive.

Oh, yeah.

Especially if you’re chewing the scenery.

Yes.

And chewing the scenery.

That’s like she’s overacting.

She’s being, you know, they’re being over the top.

It’s not necessarily a good or a bad thing, but.

And if somebody else misses their cue, you can be all laid up in anger.

Yes.

That’s funny.

I found examples going back to 2008 and it can be transitive where you ate something, meaning you did well at that thing.

Or it can be intransitive.

It just means like your general personality and character and presence of being is awesome.

You really eat, Angela.

Well, I think y’all eat, too.

Thank you.

We’re old fuddy-duddies using the teen slang.

We’re ruining it for everyone.

Right, exactly.

But, you know, if I can be linguistic about it for a second, ways of saying positive things like this ebb and flow.

And you’re always going to get these new ones coming along every 10, 20 years or so.

It’s just something new to replace the old thing.

Different ways to say great or excellent have always come along as long as slang has been tracked.

Right.

It’s so fascinating.

I love it.

Yeah.

It’s, it’s, it’s been a really sick call.

It’s so sick.

Right?

Yeah, right.

This is the bomb.

Oh, I love it.

All right.

Angela, well, call us from the road on your wig tour and let us know what else is happening in the slang world.

Awesome. Thank you both so much.

All right. Bye-bye.

Bye-bye.

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