MEANING
To bite or chew something repeatedly, wearing it away in small portions.
Use it for
Persistent feeding sounds; incremental bodily damage; escape attempted with teethUse duration and repeated bites to make damage gradual.
Words that belong together
- gnaw on bone
- gnaw through a restraint
- gnawed remains
On the page
The creature gnawed on the bone beside the bed.
Teeth had gnawed through the soft restraint.
A rat was gnawing at the body's sleeve.
Nearby words
Related words
Word forms
- Base
- gnaw / gnaws
- Past tense
- gnawed
- Past participle
- gnawed
- Present participle
- gnawing
Full tense & aspect guide
- Present
- gnaw / gnaws
- Present continuous
- am/is/are gnawing
- Present perfect
- have/has gnawed
- Present perfect continuous
- have/has been gnawing
- Past
- gnawed
- Past continuous
- was/were gnawing
- Past perfect
- had gnawed
- Past perfect continuous
- had been gnawing
- Future
- will gnaw / gnaws
- Future continuous
- will be gnawing
- Future perfect
- will have gnawed
- Future perfect continuous
- will have been gnawing
Choose the auxiliary that agrees with your subject. These are constructions of one word, not separate entries.
Usage notes
Primary category: horror. Slow, repetitive action rather than one bite or immediate consumption. Figurative worry gnaws persistently but belongs to a different sense. Verb [base, third-person present, past, past participle, -ing]: gnaw, gnaws, gnawed, gnawed, gnawing.
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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