Gnaw — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

bite or chew on with the teeth

become ground down or deteriorate

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/hiːmˈɑːləsˌɪs/

🇬🇧British English

/nˈɔː/

🇮🇳Indian English

/nˈɔː/

1 syllable Say it as /hiːmˈɑːləsˌɪs/.

Examples

gnaw an old cracker
Her confidence eroded

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

eat at erode gnaw at wear away

Parts of Speech

verb	bite or chew on with the teeth “gnaw an old cracker”
verb	become ground down or deteriorate “Her confidence eroded”

Word Forms

gnawer	noun	relatively small placental mammals having a single pair of constantly growing incisor teeth specialized for gnawing
erosive	adjective	of a substance, especially a strong acid; capable of destroying or eating away by chemical action
erosion	noun	condition in which the earth's surface is worn away by the action of water and wind
wearing away	noun	(geology) the mechanical process of wearing or grinding something down (as by particles washing over it)

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

nagen

beißen oder mit den Zähnen kauen

🇫🇷French

ronger

mordre ou mâcher avec les dents

🇪🇸Spanish

roer

morder o masticar con los dientes

🇮🇹Italian

rosicchiare

mordere o masticare con i denti

🇳🇱Dutch

knagen

bijten of kauwen met de tanden

🇵🇹Portuguese

roer

morder ou mastigar com os dentes

🇷🇺Russian

грызть

кусать или жевать зубами

India

🇮🇳Hindi

दांत से काटना

दांतों से काटना या चबाना

🇧🇩Bengali

কুটকুট

দাঁত দিয়ে কামড় বা চিবানো

🇮🇳Tamil

கடித்தல்

பற்களால் கடித்தல் அல்லது மெல்லுதல்

🇮🇳Telugu

కొరుకు

పళ్ళతో కొరుకు లేదా నమలండి

🇮🇳Marathi

कुरतडणे

दातांनी चावणे किंवा चावणे

🇮🇳Gujarati

કૂતરો

દાંત વડે કરડવું અથવા ચાવવું

🇮🇳Kannada

ಕಡಿಯಿರಿ

ಹಲ್ಲುಗಳಿಂದ ಕಚ್ಚಿ ಅಥವಾ ಅಗಿಯಿರಿ

🇮🇳Malayalam

കടിച്ചുകീറുക

പല്ലുകൾ കൊണ്ട് കടിക്കുക അല്ലെങ്കിൽ ചവയ്ക്കുക

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਕੁੱਟਣਾ

ਦੰਦਾਂ ਨਾਲ ਚਬਾਓ ਜਾਂ ਚਬਾਓ

🇵🇰Urdu

کاٹنا

دانتوں سے کاٹنا یا چبانا

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

啃

用牙齿咬或咀嚼

🇯🇵Japanese

かじる

歯で噛む、または噛む

🇰🇷Korean

시달리게 하다

이빨로 물거나 씹다

🇻🇳Vietnamese

gặm nhấm

cắn hoặc nhai bằng răng

🇹🇭Thai

แทะ

กัดหรือเคี้ยวด้วยฟัน

🇮🇩Indonesian

menggerogoti

menggigit atau mengunyah dengan gigi

🇵🇭Filipino

kumagat

kumagat o ngumunguya gamit ang ngipin

🇲🇾Malay

menggigit

menggigit atau mengunyah dengan gigi

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

نخر

عض أو مضغ بالأسنان

🇮🇷Persian

جویدن

با دندان گاز بگیرید یا بجوید

🇹🇷Turkish

kemirmek

dişlerle ısırmak veya çiğnemek

🇮🇱Hebrew

לְכַרסֵם

לנשוך או ללעוס עם השיניים

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'gnaw'?

The primary meaning of 'gnaw' is 'bite or chew on with the teeth'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'gnaw' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'gnaw' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'gnaw' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'gnaw' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'gnaw' in your daily reading?

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Occasionally

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Do you find 'gnaw' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'gnaw' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'gnaw' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'gnaw' in a professional email?

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Would you classify 'gnaw' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

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