bite
Americanverb (used with object)
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to cut, wound, or tear with the teeth.
She bit the apple greedily. The lion bit his trainer.
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to grip or hold with the teeth.
Stop biting your lip!
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to sting, as does an insect.
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to cause to smart or sting.
an icy wind that bit our faces.
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to sever with the teeth (often followed byoff ).
Don't bite your nails. The child bit off a large piece of the candy bar.
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to start to eat (often followed byinto ).
She bit into her steak.
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to clamp the teeth firmly on or around (often followed byon ).
He bit hard on the stick while they removed the bullet from his leg.
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Informal.
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to eat into or corrode, as does an acid.
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to cut or pierce with, or as with, a weapon.
The sword split his helmet and bit him fatally.
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Etching. to etch with acid (a copper or other surface) in such parts as are left bare of a protective coating.
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to take firm hold or act effectively on.
We need a clamp to bite the wood while the glue dries.
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Archaic. to make a decided impression on; affect.
verb (used without object)
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to press the teeth into something; attack with the jaws, bill, sting, etc.; snap.
Does your parrot bite?
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Angling. (of fish) to take bait.
The fish aren't biting today.
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to accept an offer or suggestion, especially one intended to trick or deceive.
I knew it was a mistake, but I bit anyway.
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Informal. to admit defeat in guessing.
I'll bite, who is it?
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to act effectively; grip; hold.
This wood is so dry the screws don't bite.
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Slang. to be notably repellent, disappointing, poor, etc.; suck.
noun
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an act of biting.
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a wound made by biting.
a deep bite.
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a cutting, stinging, or nipping effect.
the bite of an icy wind; the bite of whiskey on the tongue.
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a piece bitten off.
Chew each bite carefully.
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a small meal.
Let's have a bite before the theater.
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a portion severed from the whole.
the government's weekly bite of my paycheck.
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a morsel of food.
not a bite to eat.
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the occlusion of one's teeth.
The dentist said I had a good bite.
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Machinery.
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the catch or hold that one object or one part of a mechanical apparatus has on another.
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a surface brought into contact to obtain a hold or grip, as in a lathe chuck or similar device.
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the amount of material that a mechanical shovel or the like can carry at one time.
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sharpness; incisiveness; effectiveness.
The bite of his story is spoiled by his slovenly style.
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the roughness of the surface of a file.
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Metalworking. the maximum angle, measured from the center of a roll in a rolling mill, between a perpendicular and a line to the point of contact where a given object to be rolled will enter between the rolls.
idioms
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put the bite on,
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to solicit or attempt to borrow money or something of value from.
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to press for money, as in extortion.
They found out about his prison record and began to put the bite on him.
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bite the hand that feeds one, to repay kindness with malice or injury.
When he berates his boss, he is biting the hand that feeds him.
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bite the bullet. bullet.
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bite the dust. dust.
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bite / snap someone's head off, to respond with anger or impatience to someone's question or comment.
He'll bite your head off if you ask for anything.
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bite off more than one can chew, to attempt something that exceeds one's capacity.
In trying to build a house by himself, he bit off more than he could chew.
verb
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to grip, cut off, or tear with or as if with the teeth or jaws
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(of animals, insects, etc) to injure by puncturing or tearing (the skin or flesh) with the teeth, fangs, etc, esp as a natural characteristic
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(tr) to cut or penetrate, as with a knife
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(of corrosive material such as acid) to eat away or into
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to smart or cause to smart; sting
mustard bites the tongue
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(intr) angling (of a fish) to take or attempt to take the bait or lure
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to take firm hold of or act effectively upon
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to grip or hold (a workpiece) with a tool or chuck
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(of a screw, thread, etc) to cut into or grip (an object, material, etc)
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informal (tr) to annoy or worry
what's biting her?
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slang (often passive) to cheat
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slang to ask (for); scrounge from
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informal to attempt a task beyond one's capability
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to face up to (pain, trouble, etc) with fortitude; be stoical
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to respond harshly and rudely (to)
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See dust
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to repay kindness with injury or ingratitude
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after an unpleasant experience one is cautious in similar situations
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slang to ask someone for money
noun
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the act of biting
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a thing or amount bitten off
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a wound, bruise, or sting inflicted by biting
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angling an attempt by a fish to take the bait or lure
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informal an incisive or penetrating effect or quality
that's a question with a bite
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a light meal; snack
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a cutting, stinging, or smarting sensation
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the depth of cut of a machine tool
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the grip or hold applied by a tool or chuck to a workpiece
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dentistry the angle or manner of contact between the upper and lower teeth when the mouth is closed naturally
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the surface of a file or rasp with cutting teeth
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the corrosive action of acid, as on a metal etching plate
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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bitesimple
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bitessimple
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have bitperfect
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have bittenperfect
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has bitperfect
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has bittenperfect
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am bitingprogressive
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are bitingprogressive
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is bitingprogressive
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have been bitingperfect progressive
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has been bitingperfect progressive
Past
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bitsimple
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had bitperfect
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had bittenperfect
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was bitingprogressive
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were bitingprogressive
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had been bitingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of bite
First recorded before 1000; Middle English biten, Old English bītan; cognate with Old High German bīzan ( German beissen ), Gothic beitan, Old Norse bīta; akin to Latin findere “to split”
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.
See Examples For:
“Hey There Little Insect,” an impish folk-rocker, begs bugs not to bite, incorporating Bo Diddley’s signature clave rhythm.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
Rattlesnake bites are treatable and to have the best outcome for a bite victim, Vohra said, that person must be given antivenom as soon as possible.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
The fervor goes beyond the historic rivalry between Pele's Brazil and Diego Maradona's Argentina: Mexico, Colombia, Chile and others are all hoping Lionel Messi's Albiceleste bite the dust on Sunday.
From Barron's ● Jul. 18, 2026
This work revealed the skull had bite marks, and previously broken ribs that had healed in its lifetime.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
Dad eats a big bite of cookie and washes it down with a sip of coffee.
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
Rais Vohra, medical director of the state poison control system, said the reported bites may not represent all snakebites because the agency relies on voluntary reporting from the public and healthcare professionals.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
Current treatments work reasonably well for chemical itch caused by irritants such as mosquito bites or poison ivy.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 14, 2026
Sometimes, it’s the little bites that make the biggest impression when entertaining.
From Salon ● Jul. 12, 2026
Creamy is the point, of course, but after a few bites, everything can start tasting a little… beige.
From Salon ● Jul. 7, 2026
I hand it over, and he eats the rest in two bites.
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
Spicer noted, adding pointedly that “raising an issue and not having a solution is a bit of a problem.”
From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026
Investors should remember that “every little bit helps. Keep saving, and one day you will notice the momentum is behind you,” Young said.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 22, 2026
“It’s a life lesson right, maybe we all should embrace our imperfections a bit more.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
"Every time I allow myself to smile I kind of rein it in a bit because I know it's so early in his recovery."
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
Hers sounded a bit more promising whereas mine was unrequited.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
"The skull shows no signs of healing around the tyrannosaur tooth, so it may have already been dead when it was bitten, or it may be dead because it was bitten."
From Science Daily ● Jul. 14, 2026
Through the process of writing the script, Madonna was bitten by the memoir bug, but she channeled that confessional energy into her forthcoming album, “Confessions on a Dance Floor: Part II,” which drops July 3.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 23, 2026
But since a fan was bitten by a farm dog, the family has posted wooden signs along the road with “by appointment only” scrawled in black paint.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 31, 2026
He often gets bitten by bedbugs and walks with a cane, making climbing up and down from his bed difficult.
From Barron's ● May 28, 2026
I wished they had bitten me a hundred more times and made me as fat as the miller.
From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff
Bolstered by Finch’s ferocious basslines, hit single “Pretend We’re Dead” received significant airplay on alternative rock stations and became the group’s signature song, along with the biting anti-war anthem “Wargasm.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 19, 2026
This higher concentration likely helps make the tips harder and better suited for biting and crushing.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 16, 2026
But the film’s screenplay — a biting, laugh-a-minute wonder penned by Rashida Jones and Will McCormack — shrewdly plays with genre conventions and audience expectations, illuminating more depth with every other sentence.
From Salon ● Jul. 5, 2026
The Texas Animal Health Commission also asks that cattlemen closely monitor wounds, reduce biting pests like flies and ticks whenever possible, and abide by infestation quarantines drawn by state authorities.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
I leave, biting my lip, and let the one-brow man follow me to the bottom of Tatarska Street.
From "The Light in Hidden Places" by Sharon Cameron
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.
