BITE


Meaning of BITE in English

■ verb ( past bit ; past participle bitten )

1》 use the teeth to cut into something.

↘(of a snake, insect, or spider) wound with a sting, pincers, or fangs.

2》 (of a tool, tyre, boot, etc.) grip or take hold on a surface.

↘(of an object) press painfully into part of the body.

3》 (of an acid) corrode a surface.

4》 take effect, with unpleasant consequences: the budget cuts were starting to ~.

↘ informal annoy or worry: what's biting you now?

5》 (of a fish) take the bait or lure on the end of a fishing line into the mouth.

↘ informal be persuaded to accept an offer.

6》 ( ~ something back ) refrain with difficulty from saying something.

■ noun

1》 an act or instance of biting.

↘a piece cut off by biting.

↘ Dentistry the bringing together of the teeth in occlusion.

2》 informal a quick snack.

3》 a sharp or pungent flavour.

↘a feeling of cold in the air.

Phrases

be bitten by the —— bug develop a passionate interest in a specified activity.

~ the big one N. Amer. informal

1》 die.

2》 be very unpleasant.

~ the bullet decide after hesitation to do something difficult or unpleasant. [from the old custom of giving wounded soldiers a bullet to ~ on when undergoing surgery without anaesthetic.]

~ the dust informal die or be killed.

~ the hand that feeds one deliberately harm or offend a benefactor.

~ off more than one can chew take on a commitment one cannot fulfil.

the ~r bitten (or bit ) indicating that someone is being treated in the same way as they have treated others.

~ one's tongue make a desperate effort to avoid saying something.

once bitten, twice shy an unpleasant experience induces caution.

one could have bitten one's tongue off one profoundly regrets having said something.

put the ~ on N. Amer. & Austral./NZ informal borrow or extort money from. [1930s (orig. US): ~ , from the sl. sense 'deception'.]

Derivatives

~r noun

Origin

OE bītan , of Gmc origin.

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