Meanings
verbeat the leek (third-person singular simple present eats the leek, present participle eating the leek, simple past ate the leek, past participle eaten the leek)
present singular third person eats the leek · participle present eating the leek · past ate the leek · participle past eaten the leek
- To be compelled to take back one's words or put up with insulting treatment.
He had eaten his leek and he was anxious to be done with it.
1919, Stanley J. Weyman, “XXXV My Lord Speaks Out”, in The Great House
Origin
From Act V, scene I between Fluellen and Pistol in Shakespeare's play Henry V.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
eat the leek. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/eat%20the%20leek
MLA
“eat the leek.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/eat%20the%20leek. Accessed November 5, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “eat the leek,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/eat%20the%20leek.
Source: eat the leek on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.