[eat] vb ate ; eat.en ; eat.ing [ME eten, fr. OE etan; akin to OHG ezzan to eat, L edere, Gk edmenai] vt (bef. 12c) 1: to take in through the mouth as food: ingest, chew, and swallow in turn
2. a: to destroy, consume, or waste by or as if by eating "expenses ate up the profits" b: to bear the expense of: take a loss on 3 a: to consume gradually: corrode b: to consume with vexation: bother "what's ~ing you now" ~ vi 1: to take food or a meal
2: to affect something by gradual destruction or consumption--usu. used with into, away, or at -- eat.er n -- eat another's lunch : to deprive of profit, dominance, or success -- eat crow : to accept what one has fought against -- eat humble pie : to ap ologize or retract under pressure -- eat one's heart out 1: to grieve bitterly
2: to be jealous -- eat one's words : to retract what one has said -- eat out of one's hand : to accept the domination of another
[2]eat n [ME et, fr. OE aet; akin to OHG az food; derivative fr. the root of [1]eat] (bef. 12c): something to eat: food--usu. used in pl.