eat crow
/ˌit ˈkɹoʊ/
"eat-crow" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“eat crow” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 8
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To recognize that one has been shown to be mistaken or outdone, especially by admitting that one has made a humiliating error.
Corpus desk
Index EN-eat-crow · eat crow · English
eat crow · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-LONG 8 letters
- VOW-3 3 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "E" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern
Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | eat crow |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /ˌit ˈkɹoʊ/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “eat crow” in English
Rare enough to double-check
eat crow is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb, transcribed /ˌit ˈkɹoʊ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "To recognize that one has been shown to be mistaken or outdone, especially by admitting that one has made a humiliating error.".
eat crow doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Etymologically, the entry records: First appeared in the US in the 1870s under the form eat boiled crow. Further origin unknown. Crow meat is considered unfit for consumption, but this is true of very many animals. Compare perhaps the association of black birds with misfortune. The correct English form is eat crow, spelled E-A-T- -C-R-O-W.
Definition
- 1To recognize that one has been shown to be mistaken or outdone, especially by admitting that one has made a humiliating error.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how eat crow appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
He must apologise, he saw that clearly enough, must eat crow, as he told himself.
The Nationals started with Jerome Herman ("Dizzy") Dean, who reveled in striking out Lou Gehrig in the first inning. Gehrig made Dean eat crow in the third inning by smashing a home run.
Etymology
First appeared in the US in the 1870s under the form eat boiled crow. Further origin unknown. Crow meat is considered unfit for consumption, but this is true of very many animals. Compare perhaps the association of black birds with misfortune.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.