DICT.TW Dictionary Taiwan
Bite v. t. [imp. Bit p. p. Bitten Bit; p. pr. & vb. n. Biting.]
1. To seize with the teeth, so that they enter or nip the thing seized; to lacerate, crush, or wound with the teeth; as, to bite an apple; to bite a crust; the dog bit a man.
Such smiling rogues as these,
Like rats, oft bite the holy cords atwain. --Shak.
2. To puncture, abrade, or sting with an organ (of some insects) used in taking food.
3. To cause sharp pain, or smarting, to; to hurt or injure, in a literal or a figurative sense; as, pepper bites the mouth. “Frosts do bite the meads.”
4. To cheat; to trick; to take in. [Colloq.]
5. To take hold of; to hold fast; to adhere to; as, the anchor bites the ground.
The last screw of the rack having been turned so often that its purchase crumbled, . . . it turned and turned with nothing to bite. --Dickens.
To bite the dust, To bite the ground, to fall in the agonies of death; as, he made his enemy bite the dust.
To bite in Etching, to corrode or eat into metallic plates by means of an acid.
To bite the thumb at (any one), formerly a mark of contempt, designed to provoke a quarrel; to defy. “Do you bite your thumb at us?” --Shak.
To bite the tongue, to keep silence. --Shak.
Bit·ten a. Bot. Terminating abruptly, as if bitten off; premorse.
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bite
n 1: a wound resulting from biting by an animal or a person
2: a small amount of solid food; a mouthful; "all they had left
was a bit of bread" [syn: morsel, bit]
3: a painful wound caused by the thrust of an insect's stinger
into skin [syn: sting, insect bite]
4: a light informal meal [syn: collation, snack]
5: (angling) an instance of a fish taking the bait; "after
fishing for an hour he still had not had a bite"
6: wit having a sharp and caustic quality; "he commented with
typical pungency"; "the bite of satire" [syn: pungency]
7: a strong odor or taste property; "the pungency of mustard";
"the sulfurous bite of garlic"; "the sharpness of strange
spices" [syn: pungency, sharpness]
8: the act of gripping or chewing off with the teeth and jaws
[syn: chomp]
9: a portion removed from the whole; "the government's weekly
bite from my paycheck"
v 1: to grip, cut off, or tear with or as if with the teeth or
jaws; "Gunny invariably tried to bite her" [syn: seize
with teeth]
2: cause a sharp or stinging pain or discomfort; "The sun
burned his face" [syn: sting, burn]
3: penetrate or cut, as with a knife; "The fork bit into the
surface"
4: deliver a sting to; "A bee stung my arm yesterday" [syn: sting,
prick]
[also: bitten, bit]