How do you use the word "bite" in a sentence?

Here are real-life examples of using "bite": You're lucky because he didn't bite you. Bite down tightly, please.

Bite Meaning

/baɪt/

Definition, CEFR level A2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.

Definition

verbTo cut into something by clamping the teeth.

verbTo hold something by clamping one's teeth.

Sentence Examples

You're lucky because he didn't bite you.

Bite down tightly, please.

The dog gave me a playful bite.

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms:

burn sting

Antonyms:

None

CEFR Practice Quiz

If you do not want the dog to bite you, do not ____ his tail.

CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)

Please be careful, as that small dog might ____ if it feels scared.

Word Origin & History

From Middle English biten, from Old English bītan (“bite”), from Proto-West Germanic *bītan, from Proto-Germanic *bītaną (“bite”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeyd- (“split”). Cognates include Saterland Frisian biete (“bite”), West Frisian bite (“bite”), Dutch bijten (“bite”), German Low German bieten (“bite”), German beißen, beissen (“bite”), Danish bide (“bite”), Swedish bita (“bite”), Norwegian Bokmål bite (“bite”), Norwegian Nynorsk bita (“bite”), Faroese and Icelandic bíta (“bite”), Gothic 𐌱𐌴𐌹𐍄𐌰𐌽 (beitan, “bite”), Latin findō (“split”), Ancient Greek φείδομαι (pheídomai), Sanskrit भिद् (bhid, “break”).

Literary Quotations & Historical Citations

"[…]froſts doe bite the Meads[…]" — c. 1590–1592 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Taming of the Shrew”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene ii], page 229, column 1:

"At the laſt it [wine] biteth like a ſerpent, and ſtingeth like ‖ an adder." — 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Proverbs 23:32, column 1:

"[…]the last screw of the rack having been turned so often that its purchase crumbled, and it now turned and turned with nothing to bite[…]" — 1859, Charles Dickens, “Fire Rises”, in A Tale of Two Cities, London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC, book II (The Golden Thread), page 152:

"[…]I have knowne a very good Fiſher angle diligently four or ſix hours in a day, for three or four dayes together for a River Carp, and not have a bite[…]" — 1653, Iz[aak] Wa[lton], chapter VIII, in The Compleat Angler or The Contemplative Man’s Recreation. Being a Discourse of Fish and Fishing, […], London: […] T. Maxey for Rich[ard] Marriot, […], →OCLC; reprinted as The Compleat Angler (Homo Ludens; 6), Nieuwkoop, South Holland, Netherlands: Miland Publishers, 1969, →ISBN, pages 168–169:

"Now trust me when I tell you, young lady, teeth are something you want to take care of. They’re these rare white things that give us pleasure throughout our life. And give us bite. Our inheritance. Our means of survival. Our right to rule. Their enamel is the front line. And that line needs to be won every day." — 2016, Mark Z. Danielewski, The Familiar, Volume 3: Honeysuckle & Pain, Pantheon Books, →ISBN, page 513:

Explore More A2 Vocabulary Words