grazer, n. (Formerly at graze v.1)
(ˈgreɪzə(r))
[f. graze v.1 + -er1.]
1. An animal that grazes.
| 1708 J. Philips Cyder i. 104 After them the Cackling Goose, Close-grazer, finds wherewith to ease her Want. 1856 J. G. Whittier Panorama 14 Like the crowned grazer on Euphrates' shore. 1989 Jrnl. Zool. CCXIX. 30 Most nutritional studies on free-ranging wild herbivores have been done on grazers, and have suggested protein to be the limiting nutrient. |
2. transf. A person who ‘grazes’ (in senses *2 c, *d of the vb.). colloq. (orig. U.S.).
| 1979 Daily Tel. 27 Apr. 19/8 [In America] the most sophisticated ‘grazers’ go for the expensive or exotic foods, tucking into anything that can be swiftly opened and gulped down in the aisles. 1983 Verbatim Autumn 9/1 If there is nothing to titillate the palate in the house, the ‘grazers’ may adjourn to an open-all-night deli. 1986 A. Deosthale tr. D. Pawar in Anand & Rao Panorama 148 The canteen, subsidized by the management, was looked upon as a potential meadow for grazers. It was running on loss, and on loan. 1989 USA Today 27 Feb. 3d/3 It's thousands of bits from TV shows within one TV show—a grazer's paradise. 1990 Times 20 Jan. 32/6 Grazers, those dreadful people who wander the streets of London, drinking from cans and eating from cartons, would be force-fed ‘100 per cent pure English beef’ hamburgers until they keeled over. |