gnaw

Plural: gnaws

Verb

Verb Forms: gnawed, gnawn, gnawing, gnaws

To wear away by persistent biting or chewing.
bite or chew on with the teeth
- "gnaw an old cracker"
become ground down or deteriorate
To bite something persistently, especially something tough.
To produce excessive anxiety or worry.
To corrode; to fret away; to waste.

Noun

the act of gnawing

Examples

have a gnaw of a bone
Her comment gnawed at me all day and I couldn't think about anything else.
I watched my opponent GNAW on their lip, contemplating their next move in Scrabble.
The dog gnawed the bone until it broke in two.

Origin / Etymology

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

Synonyms

eat at, erode, gnaw at, wear away

Scrabble Score: 8

gnaw: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
gnaw: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
gnaw: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 10

gnaw: valid Words With Friends Word