verb

eat

eet

verb

To take food into the mouth and swallow it.

"They ate dinner together every night."

"She was too nervous to eat before the interview."

To use up or destroy something gradually.

"Rust had eaten through the old car's frame."

To bother or trouble someone (informal, "what's eating you?").

"Something's clearly eating him today — he's been quiet all morning."

How to Use Eat

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishTo consume food, or figuratively, to wear away at something or trouble someone.

Common pairings

eat breakfast eat out eat away at

Word Forms

ate past tense, et past tense, eat past tense, eaten past tense, etten past tense, eat plural, ate plural, et plural, eats plural, eats singular, eat singular, ate singular, et singular, eatest singular, atest singular, eateth singular

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She was too nervous to _____ before the interview.

Etymology

From Old English etan, an ancient verb going back to a Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to eat," shared across nearly all Germanic languages.

Synonyms

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have fret

Related Words

have fret possess tolerate

Rhymes for eat

meat feat beat peat heat seat teat neat sweat wheat great bleat

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