gnaw

C1 Topic:Actions & Processes

US /nɔ/ UK /nɔː/ See IPA manual

Homophones

naw /nɔ/

Freq #31239

Meanings

1

verb
To bite or chew at something repeatedly, especially something hard.

The dog gnawed the bone for hours.
2

verb
To cause someone persistent worry or anxiety.

Doubt about the decision gnawed at her all night.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Word family

Forms gnawedgnawinggnawsungnawed

Derived forms begnawforgnawgnawablegnawergnawinglyoutgnawungnawedungnawn

Related forms nag

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.

gnawen Middle English gnagan Old English *gnagan Proto-West Germanic *gnaganą Proto-Germanic *gʰnēgʰ- Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Actions & Processes

External links

# gnaw

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C1
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /nɔ/
**IPA (UK):** /nɔː/
**Frequency rank:** 31239

## Meanings
1. To bite or chew at something repeatedly, especially something hard.
2. To cause someone persistent worry or anxiety.

## Examples
- The dog gnawed the bone for hours.
- Doubt about the decision gnawed at her all night.

## Derived Forms
- begnaw
- forgnaw
- gnawable
- gnawer
- gnawingly
- outgnaw
- ungnawed
- ungnawn

## Related Forms
- nag

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: gnawen
- Root: gnagan
- Root: *gnagan
- Root: *gnaganą
- Root: *gʰnēgʰ-

## 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.

## AI Etymology
Gnaw is 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. In present-day use, it can mean to bite or chew at something repeatedly, especially something hard, or to cause someone persistent worry or anxiety. Derived formations include begnaw, forgnaw, gnawable, gnawer, and gnawingly.

## Topics
- Actions & Processes

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