Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. to stop, to leave off; thus imper. cheese on, stop (doing something).

1812		Vaux Vocab. of the Flash Lang. in McLachlan (1964) 271: To stash drinking, card-playing, or any other employment you may be engaged in, for the time present, signifies to stow it, knife it, cheese it, or cut it, which are all synonymous, that is, to desist or leave off.
1835		Worcester Herald 26 Dec. 4/3: Cheese that, don’t do it.
1859		Calif. Police Gazette 17 Apr. 1/2: ‘I’ll see you d---d first before I “pitch” any more, unless you “cheese” your “gabs.”’.
1859		Salisbury & Winchester Jrnl 15 Oct. 7/4: Beggars’ Marks [...] ‘Cheese your patur (don’t talk too much) here’.
1865		Leaves from Diary of Celebrated Burglar 7/2: One half of the ‘cross-blokes’ there had ‘molls’ along with them, who did their ‘graft’ in the evening, after their ‘blokes’ had ‘cheesed’ their game for the day.
1869		letter in Age (Melbourne) 14 June 3/8: Many a time my own endeavours to obtain an entrance to the rendezvous of some of the magsmen and burglars [but]even if I did gain admission the objects of my duty would have disappeared [...] at the well-known slang word ‘cheese’.
1872		N.Y. Times 8: ‘Cheese the game, there’s a cop,’ one of them whispered to the leader.
1880		Bulletin (Sydney) 6 Nov. 9/1: The Kurds have lately risen; skimmed along to few unprotected towns; churned the inhabitants into pulp, and then appointed themselves sole proprietors. That’s the whey the Kurds do business. They had better cheese it.
1883		Bismarck (ND) Trib. 26 Jan. 8/1: The minister preached how vulgar it was to use slang [...] I resolved then and there to take a tumble to myself that instant and cheese the vulgar habit.
1894		S. Crane in Arena Oct. in Stallman (1966) 96: Stop that! Here, you, quit yer shovin’! Cheese that!
1896		Anaconda Standard (MO) 23 Sept. 5/3: ‘Cheese, Grogan, don’t ga to stringin’ me,’ reproachfully remarked O’Hara.
1838		‘Paul Pry’ Oddities of London : .
1905		F. Hutchison Philosophy of Johnny the Gent 55: ‘Aw, cheese wit’ that kiddin’! [...] Don’t try to hand me that stuff!’ .
1906		D. Stewart Vultures of the City in Illus. Police News 15 Dec. 12/1: ‘I funked his bringing the cove here, but he laughed, told to cheese my patter, and went out’.
1908		Bulletin (Sydney) 8 Oct. 14/4: So yer goin’ ter biff Maggie on ther boko, are yer? Now, see ’ere. If yer don’t cheese usin’ this ’ere bloomin’ slang I’ll dashed well lift yer one under the lug, d’yer ’ear me?
1910		‘O. Henry’ ‘Compliments of the Season’ in Strictly Business (1915) 199: ‘Cheese the funny business,’ said Riley.
1912		Van Loan ‘Sweeney to Sanguinetti to Schultz’ in Ten-Thousand-Dollar Arm 68: Cheese on the noise, little one.
1913		Sport (Adelaide) 12 Apr. 12/1: They Say [...] That The walking novelty shop could leave a few frills off and not miss them. Jam it and cheese it, too.
1913		Van Loan ‘The Good Old Wagon’ in Lucky Seventh (2004) 201: Cheese on those barber-shop minors! [...] What do you think this is, a funeral?
1913–14		Van Loan ‘Out of His Class’ in Taking the Count 185: Cheese, lady, cheese [...] I ain’t done nothin’ to rave about.
1923		Wodehouse Inimitable Jeeves 3: He had been clearing away [...] but at the sound of the young master’s voice [he] cheesed it courteously. [Ibid.] 173: After that he cheesed it, and practically passed out of my life.
1935		A.J. Pollock Und. Speaks 21/1: Cheese the patter, don’t talk; keep quiet.
1949		I.L. Idriess One Wet Season 100: Cheese that singing now.
1954		Wodehouse Jeeves and the Feudal Spirit 157: If butlers butt in [...] the Cheesewrights cheese it.
1960		Wodehouse Jeeves in the Offing 95: We cheesed the give-and-take.

2. (US campus) to go, to wander in a casual manner.

1823		‘Jon Bee’ Dict. of the Turf, the Ring, the Chase, etc. 49: Chise When a certain Trojan chief visited Venus on Ida’s mount , he would, of course, ‘return to town’ of a morning, like a modern cockney; and ’tis fair to presume he said to the lady, ‘I must get up, dear Venny, and-chise [sic] it.
1989		Eble Campus Sl. Mar. 2: cheese – go, walk, drive in a cool manner. ‘Let’s cheese over to the pool.’.
2011		G. Hayward Corruption Officer [ebk] cap. 54: You’re just cheesing around here talking about being a rapper when you get out [i.e. of prison].

3. (US) to disregard, to ignore.

1885

Puck (N.Y.) 29 July 343: Cheese the dude! [...] Lemon is good enough for me [HDAS].

4. (US black) to treat badly.

2000

Ebonics Primer at www.dolemite.com 🌐 cheese Definition: to do someone over in a cheap way Example: Don’t cheese me bitch, or I’ll pimp slap yo ass.