gnaw

From Middle English gnawen, gnaȝen, from Old English gnagan, from Proto-Germanic *gnaganą. Cognate with Dutch knagen, German nagen, Norwegian Bokmål gnage, Norwegian Nynorsk gnaga, Swedish gnaga. Probably from Proto-Indo-European *gʰnēgʰ- (“to gnaw, scratch”).

• (UK) enPR: nô, IPA^(key): /nɔː/
• Rhymes: -ɔː
• (US) enPR: nô, IPA^(key): /nɔ/
• (cot–caught merger) enPR: nä, IPA^(key): /nɑ/

• Audio (US)

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• Homophone: nor (in non-rhotic accents)

gnaw (third-person singular simple present gnaws, present participle gnawing, simple past gnawed or (dialectal) gnew, past participle gnawed or (archaic) gnawn)

1. (transitive, intransitive) To bite something persistently, especially something tough.

   The dog gnawed the bone until it broke in two.

   • c. 1593 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedy of Richard the Third: […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene iv], line 25:

     Ten thousand men that fishes gnaw'd upon

2. (intransitive) To produce excessive anxiety or worry.

   Her comment gnawed at me all day and I couldn't think about anything else.

3. To corrode; to fret away; to waste.
   • 1637, Thomas Heywood, The Royall King, and the Loyall Subject. […], London: […] Nich[olas] and John Okes, for James Becket, […], →OCLC, Act III, signature E4, verso:

     VVots thou vvho's returnd, / The unthrift Bonvile, ragged as a ſcarre-crovv / The VVarres have gnavv'd his garments to the skinne: […]

• begnaw
• gnaw someone's vitals
• gnawer
• gnawable
• ungnawed

• nag

gnaw (plural gnaws)

1. the act of gnawing

   have a gnaw of a bone

• AgNW, Ngwa, Wang, g'wan, gawn, gwan, wang

• IPA^(key): /ɡnau̯/

gnaw

1. Soft mutation of knaw.