gnawing

American  

[naw-ing] / ˈnɔ ɪŋ /

noun

1. the act of a person or thing that gnaws.

2. Usually gnawings. persistent, dull pains; pangs.

   the gnawings of hunger.

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Other Word Forms

• gnawingly adverb

Etymology

Origin of gnawing

Middle English word dating back to 1300–50; gnaw, -ing ¹

Example Sentences

Or that night we stumbled onto a giant controlled burn and saw the flames reach up and tickle the moon and recognized the gnawing feeling that fire is something we can only feign to control.

From Los Angeles Times

Stomach gnawing and hands slightly shaky, I loaded up on ephemera for fancy paninis, held together with swipes of giardiniera mayo, and splurged on some pastel-hued botanical sodas for drinking straight from the can.

From Salon

Looking out the window, I see a squirrel sitting on a branch gnawing away at some kind of nut.

From Literature

The creature is gnawing on some parmesan crust with its eyes squeezed shut, like eating the scraps is an experience to be savored with everything it has.

From Literature

It focused her mind wonderfully, and she began to understand why Beowulf found gnawing on hard objects so appealing.

From Literature