food for thought

food for thought

Something to consider. That meeting really gave me food for thought—I might invest in their company after all.
See also: food, thought
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

food for thought

Fig. something for someone to think about; issues to be considered. Your essay has provided me with some interesting food for thought. My adviser gave me some food for thought about job opportunities.
See also: food, thought
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.

food for thought

An idea or issue to ponder, as in That interesting suggestion of yours has given us food for thought. This metaphoric phrase, transferring the idea of digestion from the stomach to mulling something over in the mind, dates from the late 1800s, although the idea was also expressed somewhat differently at least three centuries earlier.
See also: food, thought
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.

food for thought

COMMON If something gives you food for thought, it makes you think very hard about an issue. This Italian trip gave us all much food for thought. It was poor Alan dying like that, gave me food for thought.
See also: food, thought
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed.

food for thought

something that warrants serious consideration or reflection.
See also: food, thought
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

food for ˈthought

an event, a remark, a fact, etc. which should be considered very carefully because it is interesting, important, etc: The lectures were very interesting and gave much food for thought.
See also: food, thought
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

food for thought

Something to ponder. This metaphor, which implies that the mind can chew or digest an idea, dates from the early nineteenth century, although words to that effect were cited by Erasmus in his Adagia of the sixteenth century (“Nor try to put courteous conversation into the minds of impudent men, for speech is the food of thought”). The modern cliché was used by Mark Twain (A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court, 1889): “There was food for thought there.”
See also: food, thought
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer
See also:
  • give (one) food for thought
  • bread and water
  • serve out
  • McD
  • McD’s
  • McDuck
  • McDuck’s
  • McDuck's
  • Mickey D’s
  • Mickey D's
References in periodicals archive
BANKS A MILLION Food for Thought's Caroline Marsland, centre, with volunteers.
Thank you for the feed,Navid; beeb's boost for local food bank Supplies from Still Game shop donated to charity
Food For Thought aims to support poorer families, families of people who are in prison and are finding it hard to make ends meet, people living below the breadline and the homeless.
How you can serve up healthy meals (and save cash)
Always a good source of thought-provoking work, lives or ideas, the great books have enough food for thought in them to provide a university education.
Food for thought
FOOD FOR THOUGHT? With original beams, oak doors and flooring, rooms include 18ft lounge/dining room and kitchen/breakfast room.
Dining out on Newport; Newport Food Festival returns this weekend, with stalls offering food, drink and a great atmosphere. Kirstie McCrum selects homes in the city which are just as tempting
The Food For Thought team consists of Allesley Hall Primary, Castelkeep Pre-School, Allesley Primary, All Souls' Catholic Primary, Hearsall Primary, St Christopher's Primary, St John's CofE Primary and Whoberley Hall Primary.
The green machine; Kids get picky with fruit & veg to combat obesity
There's plenty of food for thought on our mouthwatering foodie news and reviews section, from restaurant reviews to recipes from top Merseyside chefs www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk/food/
Log on to www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk
Quick Frozen Foods International thanks Food for Thought (FFY) as well as the Deutsches Tiefkuhlinstitut, the British Frozen Food Federation and the TNS Worldpanel for statistics provided within the European section of the the Global Frozen Foods Almanac.
Thanks to FFT, TNS Worldpanel, German and UK Associations
But it does provide food for thought about the importance of childhood in musical development.
Musical Childhoods and the Cultures of Youth
Although written long ago they give us food for thought and enhance our reflections of the past and invigorate our tasks for what lies ahead.
Nostalgia
For those who want to explore their own spirituality, it is a sure source of food for thought. For those who simply want to enjoy some classical Persian poetry, there may be better translations available, although they are not likely to contain a wider or more representative selection of poems.
Love's Alchemy: Poems from the Sufi Tradition
A very simple set of pictures offer one-sentence insights for the very young picturebook learner, with some hilarious food for thought. Speaking of animals William Wise's Zany Zoo (0618188916, $16.00) features Lynn Munsinger's fun and whimsical animal drawings as it tells of an exotic menagerie come to live.
Houghton Mifflin
I read Rita Baum's letter "Likes Wiretapping" in the March 6, issue, in which she scolds THE NEW AMERICAN for being against unregulated wiretapping, and I would like to offer some food for thought.
Our own worst enemy
FOOD FOR THOUGHT When researchers examined PD spending in five urban districts, they found that most PD programs were funded from non-local sources, fostering the implication that PD is an "extra," included when funding is available and not an integral part of the work of the school.
Making the most of professional development
politics, education, diplomacy, medicine, business, the media." Whether or not you agree with him, this riveting work is excellent food for thought. Perhaps in the final analysis, he is basing his evaluation of mumbo jumbo on the bedrock of a former mumbo jumbo.
Wheen, Francis. How Mumbo-jumbo Conquered the World: A Short History of Modern Delusions