bite

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 bite.

    ↘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》 (bite 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.

bite the big one N. Amer. informal

1》 die.

2》 be very unpleasant.

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

bite the dust informal die or be killed.

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

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

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

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

Derivatives

biter noun

Origin

OE bītan, of Gmc origin.