to eat the leek
Preserved but no longer current.
To be compelled to eat your own words, or retract what you have said. Fluellen (in Henry V) is taunted by Pistol for wearing a leek in his hat. "Hence," says Pistol, "I am qualmish at the smell of leek." Fluellen replies, "I beseech you ... at my desire . . . to eat this leek." The ancient answers, "Not for Cadwallader and all his goats." Then the peppery Welshman beats him, nor desists till Pistol has swallowed the entire abhorrence.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “to eat the leek” mean?
To be compelled to eat your own words, or retract what you have said. Fluellen (in Henry V) is taunted by Pistol for wearing a leek in his hat. "Hence," says Pistol, "I am qualmish at the smell of leek." Fluellen replies, "I beseech you ... at my desire . . . to eat this leek." The ancient answers, "Not for Cadwallader and all his goats." Then the peppery Welshman beats him, nor desists till Pistol has swallowed the entire abhorrence.
Is “to eat the leek” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.