1 B1 informal
To eat food very quickly and greedily, often without pausing.
"The kids gobbled down their lunch in about three minutes and ran back outside to play."
separable
gobble down
B1 informal separable transitive
To eat food very quickly and greedily.
In plain English
To eat something really fast without stopping, like you haven't eaten in days.
What does "gobble down" mean?
One main meaning — here's how to use it.
Literal vs figurative
Words literally mean
To gobble (eat greedily) and send (food) down the throat.
Actually means
To eat something really fast without stopping, like you haven't eaten in days.
Usage tip
Informal and slightly humorous. Often used to describe children or people eating in a hurry. The verb 'gobble' imitates the sound of greedy eating. 'Gobble down' and 'gobble up' are largely interchangeable for food, but 'gobble down' is slightly more focused on speed.
Words that pair with "gobble down"
Natural word combinations native speakers use most often.
food meal sandwich lunch dinner snack
How to conjugate "gobble down"
The five tense forms you'll use most often.
Base
gobble down
I/you/we/they
3rd person
gobbles down
he/she/it
Past simple
gobbled down
yesterday
Past participle
gobbled down
have + pp
-ing form
gobbling down
continuous
Hear "gobble down" in the wild
Listen to native speakers using "gobble down" in real YouTube videos — click a clip to watch it on Looplines.
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