frenzy

feeding frenzy

1. A group attack on prey by predatory animals. All the children enjoy going to the aquarium to watch the feeding frenzy that occurs when the sharks are given food by the staff. Oh gosh, there's some roadkill outside, and it's become a feeding frenzy for all kinds of birds. A dead bird could lead to a feeding frenzy for the feral cats around here.

2. An intense competition by a group of people striving to get the same thing. The media feeding frenzy that occurred when the actress slipped and fell on the red carpet was an embarrassment for journalists everywhere. It's a total feeding frenzy in my department now that a corner office is up for grabs. My school has a big theater program, so it's always a feeding frenzy when a new play is being cast.

See also: feed, frenzy

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

feeding frenzy

 

1. Lit. [of sharks] a vicious, competitive feeding attack on prey animals. One of the sharks was fatally bitten during a feeding frenzy amongst his own kind.

2. Fig. a vicious attack on someone or something. It wasn't an office argument, it was a feeding frenzy led by the head accountant!

See also: feed, frenzy

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

a feeding frenzy

COMMON A feeding frenzy is a situation in which a lot of people become very excited about an event and try to get as much information about it or get as much advantage from it as they can, often in an unpleasant way. What the couple hadn't expected in their relationship was the feeding frenzy of publicity that has followed their every move. The discovery caused a feeding frenzy among biologists, whose eyes lit up with visions of the Nobel Prizes to be had for claiming and naming new species. Note: This expression was first used to describe the behaviour of groups of sharks when there is blood in the water but not enough food for them all. In this situation the sharks will attack anything that they see, even each other.

See also: feed, frenzy

Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012

feeding frenzy

an episode of frantic competition or rivalry for something.

The term originally denoted literally an aggressive and competitive group attack on prey by a number of sharks or piranhas.

2000 Larry King Live (CNN) Haven't we learned today the way this story has unfolded…to guess that this was yet another successful Republican attempt to manipulate the political process and generate a media feeding frenzy which the media has again fallen for?

See also: feed, frenzy

Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017

a ˈfeeding frenzy

(especially American English) a period of time during which somebody/something eats, spends, etc. a lot in a way that does not seem to be controlled: The news about their marriage started a media feeding frenzy, with all the newspapers trying to get photos and interviews.

A feeding frenzy is an occasion when a group of sharks or other fish attack and eat something.

See also: feed, frenzy

Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017

feeding frenzy

Excited activity, usually around some focal point. The term alludes to the intense, excited feeding by sharks and other predators attracted to prey. Its figurative use dates from the late 1900s. It often has been used for the flocking of media around an event of great interest to the public, such as a notorious murder trial.

See also: feed, frenzy

The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer