泡あわ食くう

godan verb (-u), intransitive verb

be flustered; lose one's head; panic

Idiomatic expression literally meaning 'eat bubbles', used when someone is so flustered or panicked that they act irrationally. Often appears in the set phrase 泡を食う, but the compound 泡食う is also used as a single verb.

See also: 泡を食う

• 突とつ然ぜんのトラブルに泡あわ食くってしまった。

  I panicked at the sudden trouble.

• 彼かれは泡あわ食くった様よう子すで走はしってきた。

  He came running in a flustered state.