bites

1. 1
   verb

   Third-person singular present of bite.

   The cold wind bites at exposed skin on the mountain trail.

   This mustard really bites the back of your throat.

   Note

   Teeth are optional in most of its uses. Many are intransitive and figurative: something bites when it takes firm hold, and a cold wind, a sharp mustard or a new rule bites when its effect is felt, often unpleasantly. It can also mean behaving aggressively or rebuffing an advance. Unlike the plural noun, it follows a singular subject (she bites, it bites), not a number or article.

2. 2
   noun

   Plural of bite.

   The hikers came back with itchy insect bites all over their legs.

   He finished the whole apple in four quick bites.

   Note

   One spelling covers several countable things: the wounds a dog leaves, the itchy swellings an insect leaves, and the mouthfuls a meal is eaten in. The slang uses count too, so unpleasant setbacks or acts of plagiarism can be bites as well. The same spelling is also the present-tense verb (the dog bites). A number or determiner in front marks the noun: two bites, those bites.

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