# bite

Pronunciation: say "BYT" /baɪt/

## Verb

1. To use the teeth to cut into, grip, or wound something or someone.
   - Simple: To press your teeth into something or someone, to cut, hold, or hurt it.
   - _Some breeds are more likely to bite when they feel cornered._
   - _The snake will bite if provoked._
4. Of an insect, spider, or similar small creature, to pierce the skin, as a mosquito does when it feeds.
   - Simple: To make a small hole in your skin, the way a mosquito does.
   - _Midges bite hikers relentlessly near the lake._
   - _The gnats started biting as soon as the sun set._
8. To produce a real and noticeable effect, frequently a harmful or unwelcome one.
   - Simple: To start having a strong, often bad, effect.
   - _Budget cuts began to bite halfway through the year._
   - _Sanctions only bite when major economies enforce them._
13. Of a fish, to take a baited hook or lure into its mouth.
   - Simple: To take the bait on a hook into its mouth, as a fish does.
   - _The bass bite best just after dawn._
   - _Nothing was biting despite the fresh bait._
14. To accept something offered, often as a trick, so as to be drawn into an action.
   - Simple: To accept an offer or trick that someone has set up for you.
   - _Investors finally bit when the returns looked too good to refuse._
   - _He kept dangling the offer, hoping someone would bite._
15. To cause sharp pain, hurt, or damage to someone or something.
   - Simple: To hurt someone or damage something in a sharp, painful way.
   - _Criticism from old friends can bite harder than anything a stranger says._
   - _The icy air bit at their faces all the way up the ridge._
16. To be of poor quality; to be contemptibly bad. *(slang)*
   - Simple: To be very bad or of poor quality.
   - _Group projects bite when no one does their share._
   - _His new attitude really bites._
17. To perform oral sex on; used chiefly in invective as a contemptuous dismissal. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: To perform oral sex on someone, used as a rude insult.
   - _When they mocked his idea, he told them all to bite him._
   - _Frustrated by the jeering crowd, she yelled at them to bite her._
18. To act aggressively or coldly, rebuffing others' approaches.
   - Simple: To act in an unfriendly way and push people away.
   - _Go ahead and ask; the boss doesn't bite._
   - _Our new boss looks stern, but you can knock on her door with questions; she doesn't bite._
19. To take or keep a firm hold without slipping.
   - Simple: To grip well and not slip.
   - _The crampons bite into the ice with every step._
   - _Give the line a hard tug so the knot bites and won't slip under load._
20. To cause a sharp, smarting sensation; to be pungent.
   - Simple: To have a sharp, stinging taste or feeling.
   - _The homemade horseradish bit so sharply that my eyes began to water._
   - _Cheap vinegar tends to bite harder than the aged kind._
22. To copy another's style or work rather than create something original. *(slang)*
   - Simple: To copy another person's style or ideas instead of making your own.
   - _Real artists create; they never bite._
   - _Critics accused the group of biting rather than innovating._

## Noun

2. A wound or mark on the skin made by an animal's teeth or by an insect's or spider's bite or sting.
   - Simple: A mark or sore place on the skin where an animal or insect has bitten you.
   - _The snake bite on his leg turned dark around the edges._
   - _Paramedics rushed to treat the shark bite._
3. A piece of food of the size produced by biting; a mouthful.
   - Simple: A small amount of food that fits in your mouth at once.
   - _He cut the steak into bites small enough for the toddler._
   - _Take a bite and tell me what you think._
5. A sharp, forceful, or pungent quality, as in pointed writing, aggressive play, cold air, or a strong flavor.
   - Simple: A sharp, strong quality that you notice, like in a cold wind, a spicy taste, or clever writing.
   - _The essay had real bite, cutting straight to the point._
   - _Her wit has a bite that keeps audiences alert._
6. A small, light meal or snack.
   - Simple: A small, quick meal or snack.
   - _We grabbed a quick bite between meetings._
   - _There's a café nearby if you want a bite._
7. The action or movement of clamping the teeth onto something.
   - Simple: The action of closing the teeth on something.
   - _The shark's bite exerts tremendous force._
   - _With one bite, the lion brought down its prey._
9. A fish's grab at the bait; by extension, a show of interest from someone responding to an offer, an ad, or an approach.
   - Simple: A fish taking the food on a hook, or a sign that someone is interested in something you offer.
   - _The moment Dad felt a bite, he started reeling in the line._
   - _The house sat on the market for months without a bite from buyers._
10. A brief recorded clip of someone speaking, used in a news broadcast; short for sound bite. — Ellipsis of sound bite.
   - Simple: Short form of sound bite. It means a short recorded clip of someone speaking on TV or radio.
   - _The editor cut the long interview down to a single punchy bite._
   - _Every candidate hoped for a memorable bite on the evening news._
11. The way the upper and lower teeth come together when a person closes the jaw.
   - Simple: The way your top and bottom teeth fit together when you close your mouth.
   - _An orthodontist can correct a bad bite with braces or a retainer._
   - _After the new crown went in, his bite felt slightly off when he chewed._
12. The hold that one part of a mechanism (such as the short end of a lever) exerts on the object or part it acts upon.
   - Simple: The firm grip one part of a machine has on another.
   - _As the clutch plates wore thin, they lost their bite, and the engine roared without the car picking up speed._
   - _Without enough bite, the lever simply slipped off the load._
21. A share or portion of money, especially one taken from a larger sum. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A share of money taken from a larger amount.
   - _The agent's commission was a sizable bite of the profits._
   - _The repairs took a nasty bite out of their budget._
23. An act of copying another's work or style and presenting it as one's own. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A clear copy of someone else's work or idea.
   - _Listeners dismissed the track as a shameless bite._
   - _The poster was an obvious bite of a classic album cover._
24. An unpleasant or annoying turn of events. *(slang)*
   - Simple: Something bad or unpleasant that happens.

## Noun

25. A trick, swindle, or fraud designed to cheat someone out of money or goods. *(dated)*
   - Simple: A trick or scam used to cheat someone.

## Other meanings

- (verb) To trick or swindle someone.
- (noun) A swindler or trickster who cons people.
- (noun) A blank spot near a printed page's margin or corner, caused when the frisket or another object got between the inked type and the sheet.
- (noun) The grip a spinner's delivery gets on the playing surface, making it turn sharply after it lands.

## Origin

From Middle English biten, from Old English bītan ("bite"), tracing back through Proto-Germanic *bītaną to the Proto-Indo-European root *bʰeyd- ("split"). It is related to Dutch bijten, German beißen, Swedish bita, and Latin findō ("split").

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/bite (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).