bite

From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary EnglishRelated topics: Illness & disabilitybitebite1 /baɪt/ S2 verb (past tense bit /bɪt/, past participle bitten /ˈbɪtn/, present participle biting) 1 Image of bite

WITH YOUR TEETHteeth [intransitive, transitive]BITE 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 something off a man whose arm was bitten off by an alligatorbite 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/SNAKEinsect/snake [intransitive, transitive]MIHB 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. 3 NOT SLIPpress hard [intransitive]HOLDSTICK if an object bites into a surface, it presses firmly into it and does not move or slipbite into The hooves of the galloping horses had bitten deep into the soft earth. He wore boots that bit into the ice.4 HAVE AN EFFECTEFFECT/INFLUENCEeffect [intransitive] 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 [intransitive] 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you, or to buy something they are selling, especially when they have persuaded you to do this The new camcorders were withdrawn after consumers failed to bite.6 FISHfish [intransitive]HBF if a fish bites, it takes food from a hook and so gets caught The fish just aren’t biting today.7 → bite your tongue8 → bite the dust9 → bite the bullet10 → bite off more than you can chew11 → he/she won’t bite 12 → what’s biting you/her etc? 13 → somebody/something bites14 → once bitten, twice shy15 → bite the hand that feeds you16 → be bitten by the showbiz/travel/flying etc bug17 → Bite me! → bite somebody’s head off , → nail-bitingTHESAURUSbite to use your teeth to cut, crush, or chew somethingThe dog bit me!I sometimes bite my fingernails when I’m nervous.He bit into the apple.chew to keep biting something that is in your mouthHelen was chewing a piece of gum.He was chewing on a cigar.gnaw if an animal gnaws something, it bites it repeatedlyThe dog was in the yard gnawing on a bone.nip somebody/give somebody a nip to give someone or something a small sharp biteWhen I took the hamster out of his cage, he nipped me.nibble to take a lot of small bites from somethingA fish nibbled at the bait.She sat at her desk, nibbling her sandwich. sink your teeth into somebody/something to bite someone or something with a lot of force, so that your teeth go right into themThe dog sank its teeth into my leg.He sank his teeth into the steak.chomp on something informal to bite something and chew it in a noisy wayThe donkey was chomping on a carrot.He was chomping away on big slice of toast.sting if an insect stings you, it makes a very small hole in your skin. You use sting about bees, wasps, and scorpions, and bite about mosquitoes, ants, spiders, and snakesShe stepped on a wasps’ nest and must have been stung at least 20 times. → bite back→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpusbite• Cook noodles in medium pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite.• Don't worry about the dog - he won't bite.• The company withdraws its new products quickly if consumers fail to bite.• The workers were not scratched or bitten and have not been placed under quarantine.• She was bitten by a rattlesnake.• When he got to his feet again McAteer grabbed him and bit half his ear off.• She fought off her attacker, scratching and biting him.• Not two minutes in his company and she was biting his head off.• Even a friendly dog will bite if it's scared.• A shell tore through his back, shattering his shoulder and collarbone and biting into his spine.• I sometimes bite my fingernails when I'm nervous.• On just the second day of the trip, I was bitten on the leg by a snake.• Closed basins as deep as 135 feet were bitten out of the underlying basalt.• Barry bit the corner of the packet to open it.• This Katherine bites the heads off rag-dolls and threatens her sister Bianca with a pair of pinking shears.• It chews and bites the venom into its victims, generally small mammals and birds.• Taryn, stop biting your fingernails! bite into/through/at/down• Still she felt that breeze ruffling her hair, biting at her nose.• A shell tore through his back, shattering his shoulder and collarbone and biting into his spine.• I nearly cracked a tooth biting into it.• He bit down on it, and the display began to supply proximity and ground contour information.• Still staring, he bit into the bread.• They avoid trouble at all times and only if they are cornered or pestered will they bite at their attackers.bite into• Henry cracked a tooth biting into a piece of hard candy.• Earl picked up his sandwich and bit into it.• I felt something hard as I bit into the cake.• The ski's edge should bite into the snow. Related topics: Illness & disability, Other sportsbitebite2 S3 noun 1 WITH YOUR TEETHusing teeth [countable]BITE the act of cutting or crushing something with your teeth Antonio devoured half his burger in one bite.take/have a bite (of something/out of something) She picked up the sandwich and took a bite. Can I have a bite of your apple?give somebody a bite Some fish can give you a nasty bite. Her body was covered in bite marks. 2 WOUNDwound [countable]MIBITE a small hole made where an animal or insect has bitten yousnake/ant etc bitebite of The infection is passed by the bite of a mosquito.3 → a bite (to eat)4 TASTEtaste [uncountable]CT a pleasantly sharp taste Goat’s cheese adds extra bite to any pasta dish.5 COLDcold [singular]DNCOLD a feeling of coldness There was no mistaking the approach of winter; he could feel its bite.6 EFFECTIVENESSstrong effect [uncountable]EFFECTIVE 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 FISHfish [countable]DSO 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 cherry9 jaw [countable 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, → somebody’s bark is worse than their biteExamples from the Corpusbite• Would he care to stay on for a bite to eat?• Sometimes I sit for hours and never get a bite.• We'll have a bite then go into town.• The state will be taking a bite out of money earned from local traffic tickets• The barbecue sauce lacked heat and bite.• Animal bites should be treated immediately.• His bee bite, he noticed, was finally gone.• Profits of the Bisto-to-Mr-Kipling-cakes giant have nose-dived from £150m to just over £92m with big bites taken out of both bread and cakes.• Press harder and it becomes obvious that front-end bite and turn-in are actually very good.• Despite appearances, its bark is definitely worse than its bite.• We woke up to find ourselves covered in mosquito bites.• One bite of coffee cake that tasted like a syrupy old sponge and they knew better the next time.• There's just time for a quick bite to eat before the film begins.• He now takes bites from his lunch between smokes.• You can get Lyme disease from a tick bite.• After two bites I realised the apple was rotten.• a protest song with bite and wit give somebody a bite• They can give a nasty bite.• Don't try to pet the parrot - he could give you a really nasty bite.• Perhaps the rumours of a final trial along these lines might give extra bite to the occasion.• You may reject tarantulas, in favour of otters, even though both are capable of giving a good bite.• As she walked down the corridor, she gave it that bit extra.snake/ant etc bite• After half an hour or so, spent scratching mosquito bites, I head over to see him.• Especially in children who get mosquito bites which become large and irritating.• I asked Make-Up to give him a few mosquito bites but he refused point-blank.• My legs were covered in mosquito bites.• Their plight made me feel rather guilty about my concern over the mosquito bites on my face.• Human deaths from snake bites are caused mainly by accident.• In his magazine, he published formulas for animal manures and prescriptions for the cure of snake bites and malaria.• In spite of all we could do, several snakes died as a result of the ant bites.get ... bite• His friend got bitten by a snake that was meant for Ray.• I got bitten by a rat.• Males that misread the body and facial postures of a potential mate get bitten or kicked.• Chubby, bubbly jazzman Fats Waller was among the first to really get bitten by the London bug.• We got bitten by small animals, by snakes.• If you get bitten by a spider and have these symptoms, call the doctor.• The more you get bitten, the stronger the allergic reaction.From Longman Business Dictionarybitebite /baɪt/ noun [countable]COMPUTING another spelling of BYTEOrigin bite1 Old English bitan

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Verb table

bite

Simple Form
Present
I, you, we, they	bite
he, she, it	bites
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Past
I, you, he, she, it, we, they	bit
Present perfect
I, you, we, they	have bitten
he, she, it	has bitten
Past perfect
I, you, he, she, it, we, they	had bitten
Future
I, you, he, she, it, we, they	will bite
Future perfect
I, you, he, she, it, we, they	will have bitten
> View Less

Continuous Form
Present
I	am biting
he, she, it	is biting
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you, we, they	are biting
Past
I, he, she, it	was biting
you, we, they	were biting
Present perfect
I, you, we, they	have been biting
he, she, it	has been biting
Past perfect
I, you, he, she, it, we, they	had been biting
Future
I, you, he, she, it, we, they	will be biting
Future perfect
I, you, he, she, it, we, they	will have been biting
> View Less

bite

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