cheekful

English

Etymology

cheek +‎ -ful

Noun

cheekful (plural cheekfuls or cheeksful)

1. A partial mouthful, enough to fill one's cheek.
   • 1968, Edward Abbey, “Down the River”, in Desert Solitaire: A Season in the Wilderness, McGraw-Hill; republished New York: Touchstone, 1968, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 191:

     I stop at one of the largest of these pools, undress and plunge in. Happily I flounder about, terrifying the minnows, and float on my back and spout cheekfuls of water at the sun.

   • 2007, Joseph Staten, Halo: Contact Harvest, New York: Tor, →ISBN, page 168:

     Jenkins hit the ground hard enough to come up with cheekfuls of sand, despite the mouth guard FCPO Healy had insisted they all wear.