gnaw

American  

[naw] / nɔ /

verb (used with object)

gnawed, gnawed, gnawn, gnawing

1. to bite or chew on, especially persistently.

2. to wear away or remove by persistent biting or nibbling.

3. to form or make by so doing.

   to gnaw a hole through the wall.

4. to waste or wear away; corrode; erode.

5. to trouble or torment by constant annoyance, worry, etc.; vex; plague.

---

verb (used without object)

gnawed, gnawed, gnawn, gnawing

1. to bite or chew persistently.

   The spaniel gnawed happily on a bone.

2. to cause corrosion.

   The acid gnaws at the metal.

3. to cause an effect resembling corrosion.

   Her mistake gnawed at her conscience.

gnaw British  

/ nɔː /

verb

1. to bite (at) or chew (upon) constantly so as to wear away little by little

2. (tr) to form by gnawing

   to gnaw a hole

3. to cause erosion of (something)

4. to cause constant distress or anxiety (to)

---

noun

1. the act or an instance of gnawing

Other Word Forms

• gnawable adjective
• gnawer noun
• gnawing adjective
• gnawingly adverb
• outgnaw verb (used with object)
• undergnaw verb (used with object)
• ungnawed adjective

Etymology

Origin of gnaw

before 1000; Middle English gnawen, Old English gnagen; cognate with German nagen, Old Norse gnāga

Example Sentences

Nothing prepared me for the gnawing unease of pivoting from saving to spending.

From The Wall Street Journal

And the thought that fills me with a gnawing sense of hope: is Mom serious about taking a trip, just the two of us?

From Literature

Evidence includes a hominin femur marked by clear signs of gnawing.

From Science Daily

And the bars on the side of his crib were made of wood; he gnawed on them while they thought he was sleeping.

From Literature

Artificial intelligence could be the boogeyman that gnaws at market share.

From Barron's

Related Words

• annoy
• bedevil
• haunt
• irritate
• nag