eat one's own

verb

To turn on and attack members of one's own group or clique.

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Meanings

verbeat one's own (third-person singular simple present eats one's own, present participle eating one's own, simple past ate one's own, past participle eaten one's own)

present singular third person eats one's own · participle present eating one's own · past ate one's own · participle past eaten one's own

  1. idiomaticTo turn on and attack members of one's own group or clique.

    So, in a way, they sat back and watched liberals eat their own—they watched as just deserts advocates undermined the legitimacy of rehabilitation in a way they never could have.

    2016, Francis T. Cullen, Cheryl Lero Jonson, Correctional Theory: Context and Consequences

Origin

Short for eat one's own kind or similar, as certain living organisms do.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

eat one's own. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/eat%20one's%20own

MLA

“eat one's own.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/eat%20one's%20own. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “eat one's own,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/eat%20one's%20own.

Source: eat one's own on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.