gnaw
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5++LDOCE 5++gnaw /nɔː $ nɒː/ verb [intransitive, transitive always + adverb/preposition] 1 BITEto keep biting something hard 咬，啃 SYN chew Dexter gnawed his pen thoughtfully. 德克斯特若有所思地咬着钢笔。 A rat had gnawed a hole in the box. 老鼠在箱子上咬了一个洞。gnaw at/on The puppy was gnawing on a bone. 小狗在啃着一根骨头。► see thesaurus at bite2 gnaw (away) at somebody/something phrasal verb FRIGHTENEDWORRIEDto make someone feel worried or frightened, over a period of time 使烦恼，折磨 Something was gnawing at the back of his mind. 有些事情使他心神不安。 Doubt was gnawing away at her confidence. 怀疑渐渐吞噬了她的信心。→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
gnaw• He had a wound on his thumb, which he gnawed as he looked worriedly around the car.• Deep in the interstices of daily life, no doubt, frustrations gnawed at him and resentments festered.• Terry saw other apes biting themselves and each other and gnawing at the bars, all classic signs of distress.• The cat began to gnaw at the skin of the dead snake.• It was too big a puzzle and she let it go although it gnawed away at the back of her mind.• The dog lay in the yard and gnawed its bone.• We discovered this when the power company discovered that the pole had been so deeply gnawed that it became unsafe.• A rat's teeth are strong enough to gnaw through lead pipes.• If hungry he'd gnaw your ankle just to let you know to fill his bowl.gnaw at/on• Rats gnawed on black infants' feet, while money was used to build new police stations around the corner.• A guilty pain began gnawing at her chest.• Deep in the interstices of daily life, no doubt, frustrations gnawed at him and resentments festered.• Now I took it out and gnawed on it as I went.• Now the buds are blossoming and the cricketing itch is gnawing at our stomachs.• Terry saw other apes biting themselves and each other and gnawing at the bars, all classic signs of distress.• Gentle gnawing on the tiny bones appeals to our most basic, primordial instincts.• Did you get to die a horrible death with giant ants gnawing at your body?Origin gnaw Old English gnagangnaw verbChinese
keep biting hard something Corpus to
gnaw
gnaw /nɔː $ nɒː/
verb [intransitive, transitive always + adverb/preposition]
SYN chew:
Dexter gnawed his pen thoughtfully.
A rat had gnawed a hole in the box.
gnaw at/on
The puppy was gnawing on a bone.
gnaw (away) at somebody/something phrasal verb
to make someone feel worried or frightened, over a period of time:
Something was gnawing at the back of his mind.
Doubt was gnawing away at her confidence.
▪ bite to use your teeth to cut, crush, or chew something: The dog bit me! | I sometimes bite my fingernails when I’m nervous. | He bit into the apple.
▪chew to keep biting something that is in your mouth: Helen was chewing a piece of gum. | He was chewing on a cigar.
▪gnaw if an animal gnaws something, it bites it repeatedly: The dog was in the yard gnawing on a bone.
▪nip somebody/give somebody a nip to give someone or something a small sharp bite: When I took the hamster out of his cage, he nipped me.
▪nibble to take a lot of small bites from something: A fish nibbled at the bait. | She sat at her desk, nibbling her sandwich.
▪sink your teeth into somebody/something to bite someone or something with a lot of force, so that your teeth go right into them: The dog sank its teeth into my leg. | He sank his teeth into the steak.
▪chomp on something informal to bite something and chew it in a noisy way: The donkey was chomping on a carrot. | He was chomping away on big slice of toast.
▪sting if an insect stings you, it makes a very small hole in your skin. You use sting about bees, wasps, and scorpions, and bite about mosquitoes, ants, spiders, and snakes: She stepped on a wasps’ nest and must have been stung at least 20 times.
gnaw /nɔː $ nɒː/
verb [intransitive, transitive always + adverb/preposition] Language: Old English
Origin: gnagan
to keep biting something hard Origin: gnagan
SYN chew:
gnaw at/on
gnaw (away) at somebody/something phrasal verb
to make someone feel worried or frightened, over a period of time:
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shine to produce or reflect light, especially brightly 指发光、反光、照耀 ：◆ The sun was shining and the sky was blue. 阳光灿烂，天空一片蓝。 gleam to shine with a clear bright or pale light, especially a reflected light 指闪烁、隐约闪光、微光反射 ：◆ Moonlight gleamed on the water. 月光照在水面上泛起粼粼波光。 glow (often of sth hot or warm) to produce a dull steady light 常指热的物体发出微弱而稳定的光 ：◆ The end of his cigarette glowed red. 他的烟头发着微弱的红光。 sparkle to shine brightly with small flashes of light 指闪烁、闪耀 ：◆ The diamonds sparkled in the light. 钻石在灯光下闪闪发亮。 glisten (of sth wet) to shine 指湿物闪光、闪亮 ：◆ The road glistened wet after the rain. 雨后的道路润泽闪亮。 shimmer to shine with a soft light that seems to shake slightly 指发出微弱的闪光、闪烁 ：◆ Everything seemed to shimmer in the heat. 在高温下所有的东西都好像在闪光。 glitter to shine brightly with small flashes of reflected light 指闪亮、闪耀 ：◆ The ceiling of the cathedral glittered with gold. 大教堂的天花板金光闪闪。
sparkle or glitter? 用 sparkle 还是 glitter？
twinkle to shine with a light that changes rapidly from bright to faint to bright again 指一明一暗地闪耀、闪烁 ：◆ Stars twinkled in the sky. 星星在天空中闪烁。 glint to give small bright flashes of reflected light 指微微闪光、闪亮、反光 ：◆ The blade of the knife glinted in the darkness. 刀刃在黑暗中亮了亮。
Patterns
to shine/gleam/sparkle/glisten/shimmer/glitter/glint on sthto shine/gleam/glow/sparkle/glisten/shimmer/glitter/twinkle/glint with sthto shine/gleam/sparkle/glisten/shimmer/glitter/glint in the sunlight to shine/gleam/glisten/shimmer/glitter/glint in the moonlight the stars shine/sparkle/glitter/twinklesb's eyes shine/gleam/glow/sparkle/glisten/glitter/twinkle/glintto shine/gleam/glow/glitter brightly to shine/gleam/glow/shimmer softly
