Masticate (pronounced mas-ti-keyt)
(1) To chew (usually food).
(2) To reduce materials (such as rubber) to a pulp by crushing or kneading.
1640–1650: From the Late Latin masticātus, past participle of masticāre (to chew), from the past participle stem of the post-Classical Latin masticō (I chew), from the Ancient Greek μαστιχάω (mastikháō) (I gnash the teeth”). The English masticate was a back-formation of the earlier mastication. The noun mastic (gum or resin obtained from certain small trees of the Mediterranean region and in various places east of Suez used as a chewing gum) emerged in the late fourteenth century and was from mastic, from the thirteenth century Old French mastic and directly from Late Latin mastichum, from the Classical Latin mastiche, from the Ancient Greek mastikhe, of uncertain origin but probably in some way connected with masasthai (to chew) and thus related to the modern mastication. The etymologists are divided on whether the Ancient Greek mastikhan (to gnash the teeth) was from the primitive Indo-European mendh- (to chew (and the ultimate source of mandible) or of pre-Greek origin. Masticate, masticated & masticating are verbs, masticatory, masticator & mastication are nouns and masticable is an adjective; the noun plural is mastications.
All forms tend now to be seen in specialised niches, masticatory almost always in medical or scientific literature and seems to be a favorite in entomology while masticable (capable of being chewed, that may be masticated) appeared first in 1802, quickly adopted by dieticians in hospitals & zoos although it has survived only in the latter. Other than for technical purposes, masticate’s most obvious niche is in humor, the effect achieved by using the word in a way easily confused with the almost homophonic masturbate, a device used also with the thespian/lesbian homophone. So usually, unless one is discussing the eating habits of insects or aiming for humorous effect, the monosyllabic “chew” is a better choice.
The verb chew
(masticate, bite and grind with the teeth) was from the Middle English cheuen, from the Old English ceowan, from the West Germanic keuwwan (source also of the Middle Low
German keuwen, the Dutch kauwen, the Old High German kiuwan and the German kauen). The source may have been from the primitive
Indo-European gyeu- (to chew), source
of the Old Church Slavonic živo (to
chew), the Lithuanian žiaunos (jaws)
and the Persian javidan (to chew). The figurative sense (to to think over
(usually as “chew on it”)) dates from the late fourteenth century, the origin
said to be “dinner table discussions over pieces of bacon fat”. For humorous effect, the process is sometimes
described as “mental mastication”. Later
variations include “to chew the rag” (discuss some matter), first documented in
1885 as army slang although there are claims it began both in the British Army
and the Indian Army under the Raj. To “chew
the fat” meant the same thing and was mid-twentieth century slang. . To chew (someone) out was first cited in 1948
but was thought to be military slang from World War II (1939-1945), the idea
being having been “chewed up and spat out”.
As a packaged product, chewing gum was first sold in the US in 1843, the
early formulations being hardened secretions from the spruce tree.
The purported fallacy
The purported fallacy is a rhetorical device intended to
confuse or suggest irrelevant considerations into the mind of the listener, It’s related to but distinct from the “red
herring” (in figurative use, a clue, information, argument, etc. that is or is intended to be misleading, diverting attention from the real answer or issue). A well-known example from the US is often
quoted but is unfortunately a myth, fake news in its time but still refusing to
die. In the Florida primary contest for
the Democratic nomination in the 1950 Senate campaign, Claude Pepper (1900–1989;
Democrat Senator for Florida 1936-1951, Democrat member of House of
Representatives (Florida 1963-1989)) lost to George Smathers (1913–2007;
Democrat member of House of Representatives (Florida) 1947-1951 and Democrat
Senator for Florida 1951-1969). Smathers
had managed Pepper's successful 1938 campaign and the association continued, Pepper
pulling strings so Smathers could avoid military service during World War II (1939-1945) and
helping him become an assistant attorney-general.
The 1950 Senate election in Florida was noted for flamboyant
oratory, ideological ferocity and personal dramas but that was neither novel
nor unique to Florida, indeed, by mid twentieth century thing had been toned-down from what had prevailed during much of the 1800s. Smathers labeled
his opponent “Red” Pepper which, if unfair, was funny and, in the early Cold War, a not unusual tactic, Senator Joe McCarthy (1908–1957; senator for
Wisconsin (Republican) 1947-1957) that year having delivered his inflammatory Lincoln Day
speech in which he claimed to have list of known communists employed by the State
Department. However, what arose during
the campaign was the legend that Smathers, assuming low education and high prejudice
in the minds of some voters, had made speeches in rural areas accusing his
opponent of being “a shameless extrovert”, having “a sister who was once a
thespian in wicked New York”, having "practiced celibacy before his marriage" and being someone “who had been seen masticating fish”.
Irresistibly good copy, the words appeared in the 17 April issue of Time magazine and despite cautioning they were “of doubtful authenticity” they’ve for decades been recycled, used for illustrative effect for this and that across the political spectrum; Robert Sherrill (1924-2014) on the left and William F Buckley (1925–2008) on the right, both claiming it happened. The truth (which Buckley later acknowledged), was the words turned out to be the work of journalists covering the campaign who, over drinks, began inventing double-talk quotations and swapping them. It became a contest to see who could write the funniest and some of them leaked, published as fact. After decades of estrangement, a Pepper fund-raising letter ended up in Smathers' office. Smathers responded with a contribution and Pepper, after joking that the cheque bounced, sent a note of thanks. Smathers said he would contribute to Pepper as long as he was in the Congress as a champion of the elderly, adding he was now “old enough to where I kind of feel like he may speak for me''.
Satirists work in a similar vein to those tipsy reporters. In 2006, in a parody of the attack ads the Liberal Party was using against Stephen Harper’s (b 1959; prime minister of Canada 2006-2015) Conservative Party government, National Public Radio (NPR) offered:
Stephen Harper has plans for Canada, scary plans. Scary, evil plans. We can't make this up, we're not allowed to. Stephen Harper owns a dragon. He keeps it in a shed. Seriously. Stephen Harper drinks his own blood. We saw him. We're not allowed to make this up. The Liberal Party, let's see how badly we can lose this thing.
