don't bite off more than you can chew
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
Do not take on more responsibility than you can handle
Literally: bite off more food than can be chewed
Examples
I wanted to start a new business, but my friend told me not to bite off more than I can chew
AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Sources & notes
Listed on English Wikiquote “English proverbs” (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-31). Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-31; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “don't bite off more than you can chew” mean?
Do not take on more responsibility than you can handle Literally: bite off more food than can be chewed
Is “don't bite off more than you can chew” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.