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wolf back

C1 informal separable transitive
In simple words

To eat food super fast, like a hungry wolf.

Literal meaning: To eat like a wolf, sending food 'back' (into the throat/stomach) — the 'back' suggests rapid ingestion.

Meanings

1 C1 idiomatic informal

To eat food very quickly and eagerly, with little attention to manners or taste.

"He wolfed back his lunch in under two minutes and rushed back to work."

Grammar: separable
Usage notes

An uncommon variant of 'wolf down'. Occurs in some British and Irish regional speech. Learners should note that 'wolf down' is overwhelmingly more common and more widely understood. 'Wolf back' may cause confusion outside certain regions.

Commonly used with

food meal sandwich dinner leftovers

Forms

Base
wolf back
I/you/we/they
3rd person
wolfs back
he/she/it
Past simple
wolfed back
yesterday
Past participle
wolfed back
have + pp
-ing form
wolfing back
continuous

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