You ate that presentation, every slide was perfect.
She ate that performance and left the crowd stunned.
His red-carpet look ate and everyone knew it.
They ate the choreography and left no crumbs.
The dog ate its food quickly.
Similar words
crushed
devoured
owned
nailed
gobbled
slayed
rocked
polished off
killed
dominated
Meanings
Past tense of eat
verb
food
neutral
Consumed food or drink at a specific time in the past.
Examples
She ate the apple in one bite.
They ate dinner together last night.
He ate too much cake at the party.
We ate before the movie started.
The dog ate its food quickly.
Similar words
consumed
devoured
ingested
gobbled
polished off
wolfed down
Praised for doing exceptionally well
verb
social
slang
Did something exceptionally well, looked striking, or made a strong impression.
Examples
She ate that performance and left the crowd stunned.
You ate that presentation, every slide was perfect.
His red-carpet look ate and everyone knew it.
They ate the choreography and left no crumbs.
That final verse ate, especially the last line.
Similar words
slayed
crushed
nailed
killed
owned
rocked
dominated
Etymology
From Old English æt, the past tense of etan, meaning to eat. The modern praise sense grew from figurative uses such as ate it up and left no crumbs.
FAQ
What does ate mean?
Ate is the simple past tense of eat.
What does ate mean in slang?
In slang, ate praises someone for doing something exceptionally well or making a strong impression.
What does ate and left no crumbs mean?
It means someone did so well that nothing was left to criticize.
Can ate be used in present tense?
No. The present tense is eat, as in she eats, while ate is past tense.
What is the past participle of ate?
The past participle is eaten, as in has eaten.
Is ate formal?
The food meaning is neutral, but the praise meaning is slang and informal.
How do you use slang ate in a sentence?
A natural example is She ate that performance and left no crumbs.
Comments & contributions
Know this word from another angle? Add a correction, a nuance, or a usage note. New posts go public after a quick review.
Newest
Top
Active
Mild Ladybug
Jul 12
en español me confundia mucho al principio, pense que era literalmente comer algo
0
Reply
Chipper Raccoon
Jul 5
i still hear the food meaning first unless the sentence is very online. "that outfit ate" took me a minute lol
1
Reply
Contribution
Copper Toucan
Jul 1
I keep seeing learners write "did you ate" because ate feels like the important part. English is annoying there, after did it has to go back to eat. Did you eat, did she go, did they see.
2
Reply
Contribution
Dapper Quail
Jun 20
The slang meaning didnt start as random TikTok teen talk. It was around in Black and Latino queer ballroom and drag spaces before everyone on TikTok started typing it under outfits.
6
Reply
Proud Eagle
Jun 27
yeah, the second a bank uses it in an ad im done
1
Contribution
Rustic Swallow
Jun 19
please add "ate it" somewhere someday. In American skate/bike talk, "he ate it on the curb" means he crashed or faceplanted, not that he did great.
8
Reply
Contribution
Merry Gopher
Jun 14
In the UK ate can sound like /et/. I used to think people were saying a whole different word, but no, "I et breakfast" is just ate in a lot of accents.