nibble

American  

[nib-uhl] / ˈnɪb əl /

verb (used without object)

nibbled, nibbling

1. to bite off small bits.

2. to eat or chew in small bites.

   Give him a graham cracker to nibble on.

3. to bite, eat, or chew gently and in small amounts (usually followed byat ).

   She was so upset she could only nibble at her food.

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verb (used with object)

nibbled, nibbling

1. to bite off small bits of (something).

2. to eat (food) by biting off small pieces.

3. to bite in small bits.

   He nibbled each morsel with great deliberation.

noun

1. a small morsel or bit.

   Each nibble was eaten with the air of an epicure.

   Synonyms:

   crumb, taste, bite, tidbit

2. an act or instance of nibbling.

3. a response by a fish to bait on a fishing line.

4. any preliminary positive response or reaction.

idioms

1. nibble away at, to cause to decrease or diminish bit by bit: Also nibble at.

   Inflation was nibbling away at her savings. The rains nibbled at the loam.

nibble British  

/ ˈnɪbəl /

verb

1. (esp of animals, such as mice) to take small repeated bites (of)

2. to take dainty or tentative bites

   to nibble at a cake

3. to bite (at) gently or caressingly

4. (intr) to make petty criticisms

5. (intr) to consider tentatively or cautiously

   to nibble at an idea

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noun

1. a small mouthful

2. an instance or the act of nibbling

3. informal (plural) small items of food, esp savouries, usually served with drinks

Other Word Forms

• unnibbled adjective

Etymology

Origin of nibble

1425–75; late Middle English nebillen to peck away at, nibble, try, perhaps < Middle Low German nibbelen to pick with the beak; nib, -le

Example Sentences

Trading in currency markets, including a modest retreat for the dollar, suggest Wall Street is willing to nibble around the edges of a post-war trade.

From Barron's

The fish-hooks were empty except for one, which held the bones of a small fish, neatly nibbled clean.

From Literature

Models wove through the scattered tables, clad in the latest fashions, as ladies nibbled on cucumber sandwiches and sipped tea from white porcelain cups.

From Literature

McDonald’s Chief Executive Chris Kempczinski had taken what social media mocked as a paltry nibble in a video promoting the chain’s new Big Arch burger, or “product,” as the CEO called it.

From The Wall Street Journal

“I don’t even know how to attack it. God, so much to it. Alright, the moment of truth,” Kempczinski says in the clip, before nibbling the sandwich.

From MarketWatch

Related Words

• eat
• gnaw
• nip