bite

bite¹ S2 [baıt] v past tense bit [bıt] past participle bitten [ˈbıtn] present participle biting

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1¦(teeth)¦

2¦(insect/snake)¦

3¦(press hard)¦

4¦(effect)¦

5¦(accept)¦

6¦(fish)¦

7 bite your tongue

8 bite the dust

9 bite the bullet

10 bite off more than you can chew

11 he/she won't bite

12 what's biting you/her etc?

13 something/somebody bites

14 once bitten, twice shy

15 bite the hand that feeds you

16 be bitten by the showbiz/travel/flying etc bug

Phrasal verbs

　bite back

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[: Old English; Origin: bitan]

1.) ¦(TEETH)¦ [I and T]

to use your teeth to cut, crush, or chew something

▪ The dog bit him and made his hand bleed.

bite into/through/at/down

▪ She bit into a croissant and took a sip of coffee.

▪ An adult conger eel can easily bite through a man's leg.

▪ Nina pushed her fist into her mouth and bit down hard .

bite sth off

▪ a man whose arm was bitten off by an alligator

bite your nails

(=bite the nails on your fingers, especially because you are nervous)

▪ I wish I could stop biting my nails.

bite your lip

(=because you are upset or not sure what to say)

▪ She paused uncertainly, biting her lip.

2.) ¦(INSECT/SNAKE)¦ [I and T]

to injure someone by making a hole in their skin

→↑sting

▪ I think I've been bitten.

▪ The dog's been badly bitten by fleas.

▪ Spiders generally bite only in self-defence.

3.) ¦(PRESS HARD)¦

if an object bites into a surface, it presses firmly into it and does not move or slip

bite into

▪ The hooves of the galloping horses had bitten deep into the soft earth.

▪ He wore boots that bit into the ice.

4.) ¦(EFFECT)¦ [I]

to start to have an unpleasant effect

▪ The new tobacco taxes have begun to bite.

bite into

▪ The recession is biting into the music industry.

5.) ¦(ACCEPT)¦ [I]

to believe what someone tells you or to buy something they are selling, especially when they have persuaded you to do this

▪ The new camcorders were withdrawn after consumers failed to bite.

6.) ¦(FISH)¦ [I]

if a fish bites, it takes food from a hook and so gets caught

▪ The fish just aren't biting today.

7.) bite your tongue

to stop yourself from saying what you really think, even though this is difficult

▪ She should have bitten her tongue.

8.) bite the dust [i]informal

to die, fail, or be defeated

▪ Italy's championship hopes eventually bit the dust.

9.) bite the bullet informal

to start dealing with an unpleasant or dangerous situation because you cannot avoid it any longer

▪ I finally bit the bullet and left.

10.) bite off more than you can chew

to try to do more than you are able to do

11.) he/she won't bite

spoken used to say that there is no need to be afraid of someone, especially someone in authority

▪ Well go and ask him - he won't bite!

12.) what's biting you/her etc?

spoken used to ask why someone is annoyed or upset

13.) sth/sb bites

spoken not polite used to say that you dislike someone or something very much or think that something is very bad

14.) once bitten, twice shy

used to say that if you have failed or been hurt once, you will be more careful next time

15.) bite the hand that feeds you

to harm someone who has helped or supported you

16.) be bitten by the showbiz/travel/flying etc bug

to develop a very strong interest in something

→bite sb's head off at ↑head¹ (33)

→↑nail-biting

bite back phr v

1.) bite sth<=>back

to stop yourself from saying or showing what you really think

▪ Tamar bit back the retort which sprang to her lips.

2.) to react strongly and angrily to something

bite back at

▪ Determined to bite back at car thieves, he wired his car to an electric fence.

bite ²

bite² S3 n

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1¦(using teeth)¦

2¦(wound)¦

3 a bite (to eat)

4¦(taste)¦

5¦(cold)¦

6¦(strong effect)¦

7¦(fish)¦

8 another/a second bite at the cherry

9¦(jaw)¦

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1.) ¦(USING TEETH)¦

the act of cutting or crushing something with your teeth

▪ Antonio devoured half his burger in one bite.

take/have a bite (of sth/out of sth)

▪ She picked up the sandwich and took a bite.

▪ Can I have a bite of your apple?

give sb a bite

▪ Some fish can give you a nasty bite.

▪ Her body was covered in bite marks .

2.) ¦(WOUND)¦

a small hole made where an animal or insect has bitten you

snake/mosquito/ant etc bites

bite of

▪ The infection is transmitted by the bite of a mosquito.

3.) a bite (to eat) informal a small meal

▪ We had a bite to eat and a couple of drinks before the flight.

4.) ¦(TASTE)¦[U]

a pleasantly sharp taste

▪ Goat's cheese adds extra bite to any pasta dish.

5.) ¦(COLD)¦ [singular]

a feeling of coldness

▪ There was no mistaking the approach of winter; he could feel its bite.

6.) ¦(STRONG EFFECT)¦[U]

a special quality in a performance, piece of writing etc that makes its arguments very effective and likely to persuade people

▪ The film gains incisive bite from Sellers' performance as the union chief.

7.) ¦(FISH)¦

when a fish takes the food from a hook

▪ Sometimes I sit for hours and never get a bite .

8.) another/a second bite at the cherry

BrE a second chance to do something

9.) ¦(JAW)¦ [C usually singular]

technical the way that a person or animal's top and bottom teeth touch when their mouth is closed

▪ Our dentist said that Emmy should wear a brace to improve her bite.

→↑love bite, ↑sound bite,sb's bark is worse than their bite at ↑bark² (4)