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BITE
Pronunciation (US): | (GB): |
Irregular inflected forms: bit , bitten
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
A portion removed from the whole
Example:
the government's weekly bite from my paycheck
Classified under:
Nouns denoting acts or actions
Hypernyms ("bite" is a kind of...):
deduction; subtraction (the act of subtracting (removing a part from the whole))
Domain usage:
argot; cant; jargon; lingo; patois; slang; vernacular (a characteristic language of a particular group (as among thieves))
Sense 2
Meaning:
The act of gripping or chewing off with the teeth and jaws
Synonyms:
bite; chomp
Classified under:
Nouns denoting acts or actions
Hypernyms ("bite" is a kind of...):
eating; feeding (the act of consuming food)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "bite"):
munch (a large bite)
nibble (gentle biting)
nip; pinch (a small sharp bite or snip)
Derivation:
bite (to grip, cut off, or tear with or as if with the teeth or jaws)
Sense 3
Meaning:
A strong odor or taste property
Example:
the raciness of the wine
Synonyms:
bite; pungency; raciness; sharpness
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Hypernyms ("bite" is a kind of...):
spice; spicery; spiciness (the property of being seasoned with spice and so highly flavored)
Sense 4
Meaning:
Wit having a sharp and caustic quality
Example:
the bite of satire
Synonyms:
bite; pungency
Classified under:
Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents
Hypernyms ("bite" is a kind of...):
humor; humour; wit; witticism; wittiness (a message whose ingenuity or verbal skill or incongruity has the power to evoke laughter)
Sense 5
Meaning:
(angling) an instance of a fish taking the bait
Example:
after fishing for an hour he still had not had a bite
Classified under:
Hypernyms ("bite" is a kind of...):
success (an event that accomplishes its intended purpose)
Domain category:
fishing; sportfishing (the act of someone who fishes as a diversion)
Sense 6
Meaning:
Synonyms:
Classified under:
Nouns denoting foods and drinks
Hypernyms ("bite" is a kind of...):
meal; repast (the food served and eaten at one time)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "bite"):
refreshment (snacks and drinks served as a light meal)
nosh ((Yiddish) a snack or light meal)
coffee break; tea break (a snack taken during a break in the work day)
Sense 7
Meaning:
A small amount of solid food; a mouthful
Example:
all they had left was a bit of bread
Synonyms:
Classified under:
Nouns denoting foods and drinks
Hypernyms ("bite" is a kind of...):
mouthful; taste (a small amount eaten or drunk)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "bite"):
chaw; chew; cud; plug; quid; wad (a wad of something chewable as tobacco)
crumb (small piece of e.g. bread or cake)
sop; sops (piece of solid food for dipping in a liquid)
Sense 8
Meaning:
A wound resulting from biting by an animal or a person
Classified under:
Nouns denoting stable states of affairs
Hypernyms ("bite" is a kind of...):
lesion; wound (an injury to living tissue (especially an injury involving a cut or break in the skin))
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "bite"):
snakebite (a bite inflicted by a (venomous) snake)
dog bite (a bite inflicted by a dog)
Derivation:
bite (to grip, cut off, or tear with or as if with the teeth or jaws)
Sense 9
Meaning:
A painful wound caused by the thrust of an insect's stinger into skin
Synonyms:
bite; insect bite; sting
Classified under:
Nouns denoting stable states of affairs
Hypernyms ("bite" is a kind of...):
harm; hurt; injury; trauma (any physical damage to the body caused by violence or accident or fracture etc.)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "bite"):
bee sting (a sting inflicted by a bee)
flea bite (sting inflicted by a flea)
mosquito bite (a sting inflicted by a mosquito)
Derivation:
bite (deliver a sting to)
II. (verb)
Verb forms
Present simple: I / you / we / they bite ... he / she / it bites
Past participle: bitten
-ing form: biting
Sense 1
Meaning:
Penetrate or cut, as with a knife
Example:
The fork bit into the surface
Classified under:
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging
Hypernyms (to "bite" is one way to...):
pierce (make a hole into)
Sentence frame:
Something ----s something
Sense 2
Meaning:
Example:
A bee stung my arm yesterday
Synonyms:
bite; prick; sting
Classified under:
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging
Hypernyms (to "bite" is one way to...):
pierce (make a hole into)
Sentence frames:
Something ----s somebody
Something ----s something
Derivation:
bite (a painful wound caused by the thrust of an insect's stinger into skin)
Sense 3
Meaning:
To grip, cut off, or tear with or as if with the teeth or jaws
Example:
Gunny invariably tried to bite her
Synonyms:
bite; seize with teeth
Classified under:
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging
Hypernyms (to "bite" is one way to...):
grip (hold fast or firmly)
Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "bite"):
gnaw (bite or chew on with the teeth)
bite off; snap at (bite off with a quick bite)
snap (bring the jaws together)
nibble (bite gently)
nip (give a small sharp bite to)
nibble (bite off very small pieces)
Sentence frames:
Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody
Also:
bite off (bite off with a quick bite)
Derivation:
bite (the act of gripping or chewing off with the teeth and jaws)
bite (a wound resulting from biting by an animal or a person)
biter (someone who bites)
Sense 4
Meaning:
Cause a sharp or stinging pain or discomfort
Example:
The sun burned his face
Synonyms:
bite; burn; sting
Classified under:
Verbs of seeing, hearing, feeling
Hypernyms (to "bite" is one way to...):
ache; hurt; smart (be the source of pain)
Verb group:
burn (feel hot or painful)
Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "bite"):
nettle; urticate (sting with or as with nettles and cause a stinging pain or sensation)
Sentence frames:
Something ----s somebody
Something ----s something
Context examples:
That is about the only bit of consolation I have had to-day.
(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
You have a bit of paper beside you there.
(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
Lizzy is not a bit better than the others; and I am sure she is not half so handsome as Jane, nor half so good-humoured as Lydia.
(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)
“It’s a bit like film photography,” explained graduate student researcher Daniel Oran.
(Researchers Use Laser to Shrink Objects to Nanoscale, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)
Instead, the same antivenom is used to treat bites by all the ‘big four’ indiscriminately, often with adverse consequences.
(‘India needs region-specific snakebite antivenoms’, SciDev.Net)
“This is a very strange tale, Poole; this is rather a wild tale my man,” said Mr. Utterson, biting his finger.
(The Strange Case Of Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson)
And first, I'll give you a bit of hope; Silver, if we both get alive out of this wolf-trap, I'll do my best to save you, short of perjury.
(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)
“Wait a bit, Gregson,” said Sherlock Holmes.
(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
For patients who receive marrow or peripheral blood cells, platelet engraftment often happens at the same time or a little bit after neutrophil engraftment.
(Platelet Engraftment, NCI Thesaurus)
It was a rough little bit of cutlass and pistol work.
(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)