adjective
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piercing; keen
a biting wind
-
sarcastic; incisive
a biting comment
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of biting
First recorded in 1250–1300, biting is from the Middle English word bitynge. See bite, -ing 2
Explanation
Anything biting is sharp and painful, like the biting wind off that rolls off a frozen lake on a blustery day. A biting dog has the tendency, literally, to bite with its sharp teeth. A more common, figurative way to use this adjective is to mean either "painfully cold" or "cruel." So there's the biting cold of January in Minnesota, but there's also the biting remark of someone whose words are just as agonizing.
Vocabulary lists containing biting
Chill Out! Synonyms for "Cold"
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List 3
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Cold
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"Tipah spends most of her time keeping a watchful eye on them while enjoying a little respite from all the jumping, biting and playing that comes with raising energetic tiger cubs," he added.
From BBC • Jun. 10, 2026
Known as deer keds, these biting flies are found throughout Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas.
From Science Daily • Jun. 2, 2026
The Bidens tried again with Commander, a German shepherd puppy who joined them in December 2021, but he was also gone by October 2023 after at least 24 documented biting incidents.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 1, 2026
Harding posed for photos while biting into his hamburger, and popped onto a nearby patch of grass to smile with the planes.
From Los Angeles Times • May 28, 2026
Not long before I had felt the biting wind.
From "Black Star, Bright Dawn" by Scott O'Dell
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
