belly-worship

A man indulges in belly-worship at a lavish feast.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • Gluttony: "Belly-worship" refers to the excessive indulgence in eating and drinking, treating food as an object of devotion or worship. It implies a prioritization of bodily appetites over spiritual or intellectual pursuits.

Usage Examples

• (His obsession with food and drink shows gluttony.)
• (The king's excessive eating was condemned as a vice.)

Advanced Usage

• "to engage in belly-worship": to habitually overindulge in food or drink.
  • After the harvest festival, the villagers engaged in days of belly-worship. (They celebrated with excessive eating.)

Variants and Related Words

• Belly-worshipper (n): a person who practises gluttony or excessive eating.
  • He was known as a notorious belly-worshipper at every banquet. (He ate greedily and excessively.)

Synonyms

• Gluttony: habitual greed or excess in eating.
• Gourmandism: the love of good food, often to excess.
• Pigging out (informal): eating to the point of excess.

Related Idioms

• To worship the belly: to be enslaved by one's appetite.
  • He worshipped the belly, spending all his money on lavish meals. (He was controlled by his desire for food.)

Cultural Note

This word is archaic and used primarily in moral or religious contexts to criticize materialistic or hedonistic behaviour. It is rarely used in modern conversation.