Champing at the Bit

Today is a new day, exciting day.  I will begin a new semester of teacher training.  As an instructor, I am champing at the bit to start.  I am thrilled to get back into the classroom and spend some time with the trainees.  I am also delighted to try a new unit this year, the Human Library.  I hope everything goes well.

The phrase champing at the bit means to be excited to do something.  It comes from horse racing, a horse champing at the bit.  A bit is a piece of metal that goes in the horse’s mouth and is attached the reins.  The bit is used to ‘encourage’ a horse to move in a certain direction.  Champing is chewing vigorously.  If you have ever seen a nervous baseball player quickly chewing his gum you know what champing is.

And the original phrase was CHAMPING at the bit with the earliest recorded use in 1810.  Usually, native speakers say chomping at the bit because the term chomping is more familiar to us.  Chomping at the bit dates to 1920.  However, the word chomp is replacing champ over time.  Chomping and champing are quite similar.

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Reference:
https://www.horsefactbook.com/tack/horse-bits-explained/
https://www.npr.org/sections/memmos/2016/06/09/605796769/chew-on-this-is-it-chomping-or-champing
https://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/champ-at-the-bit.html