ˈnȯ verb
( gnawed -ȯd ; gnawed “ ; also gnawn -ȯn ; gnawing ; gnaws )
Etymology: Middle English gnawen, from Old English gnagan; akin to Old High German gnagan, nagan to gnaw, Old Norse gnaga to gnaw, and perhaps to Russian gnit' to rot
transitive verb
1.
a. : to bite or chew on with the teeth : wear away or remove a part from by persistent or repeated biting or nibbling
the dog was gnawing a bone
sheep gnaw the tough grass off the range and leave it barren — Green Peyton
b. : to make by persistent or repeated biting or nibbling
rats gnawed a hole in the floor
2.
a. : to be a source of annoyance, worry, or vexation to : harass , plague
the restraints of censorship … gnawed every correspondent — Atlantic
her brain was gnawed by savage and distorted thoughts — James Boyd
b. : to cause (as the stomach) to feel discomfort similar to that produced by persistent biting
hunger gnawed his vitals
3. : to wear away by or as if by erosion or corrosion
time shall gnaw the proudest towers — Phineas Fletcher
intransitive verb
1. : to bite persistently or repeatedly with the teeth
the dog gnawed away at the bone
he gnawed nervously at his underlip — Oscar Wilde
a thousand men that fishes gnawed upon — Shakespeare
2. : to produce an effect of or as if of gnawing : eat
the waves are gnawing away at the soft cliffs — Richard Joseph
some of the roads gnaw at the tires — Claudia Cassidy
strange truths that have gnawed on her lonely heart — Lillian Smith
inflation and taxation gnaw increasingly at the savings of the people — Freedom & Union