Dictionary

grass-eater en · NOUN · etymology 1

Etymology

From grass + eater; applied to bribe-accepting polics by the Knapp Commission in the 1970s.

Meanings

1. An organism notable for eating grass
2. An organism notable for eating grass ▸ A fish of species Distichodus rostratus or Distichodus engycephalus, of Africa
3. (figuratively) A police officer who accepts offered bribes but does not actively seek them out.
   • It was the grass-eaters, the commission found, that made corruption respectable within the organization, encouraging a code of silence among officers. 2012, Lee P. Brown, Policing in the 21st Century: Community Policing, AuthorHouse, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 50:
   • But why do police become grass-eaters at all, if they lack the greed and contempt fo decency necessary to become meat-eaters? 2002, Edwin J. Delattre, Character and Cops: Ethics in Policing, American Enterprise Institute, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 79:
   • Grass-eaters constituted the majority of police officers who were corrupt; meat-eaters were rare. But meat-eaters are more dangerous. They aggressively misuse their police powers for personal gain. 2016 September 13, Regoli, John D. Hewitt, Anna E. Kosloski, Exploring Criminal Justice, Jones & Bartlett Publishers, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 113:

Forms

Coordinates

meat-eater

Relateds

grasseater

wikipedia: Knapp Commission

grass-eater en · NOUN · etymology 2

Etymology

Calque of Japanese 草食系男子 (sōshokukei danshi, “herbivorous/grass-eating male”).

Meanings

1. (derogatory, slang) A celibate man, especially a Japanese man, who eschews dating and sexual relationships.
   • She dubbed them “herbivore men” (shoshoku danshi) in a 2006 article, and the phrase caught on as the nation took note of the gentle grass-eaters. Their lesser-known counterparts are the “carnivore women” (nikushoku joshi) who take the initiative in life and love. 2016 November 14, Kittredge Cherry, Womansword: What Japanese Words Say About Women, Stone Bridge Press, →ISBN, →OCLC:
   • That is what the modern men of Japan have done, these grass-eaters. 2011 March 17, Paul Mceuen, Spiral, Hachette UK, →ISBN:
   • The grass-eaters fail to maintain a 'manly' appearance, snared instead by the world of cosmetics and fashion which makes them look soft, 'fragile and girlie' ([…]). 2016 July 1, Genaro Castro-Vazquez, Intimacy and Reproduction in Contemporary Japan (Routledge Research on Gender in Asia Series), Routledge, →ISBN, page 62:

Forms

Synonyms

herbivore man