Old English gnagan "to gnaw, bite off little by little" (past tense *gnog, past participle gnagan), from Proto-Germanic *gh(e)n- "to gnaw" (cognates: Old Saxon gnagan, Old Norse, Swedish gnaga, Middle Dutch, Dutch knagen, Old High German gnagan, German nagen "to gnaw"), probably imitative of gnawing. Figurative sense "wear away as if by continued biting" is from early 13c. Related: Gnawed; gnawing.
双语例句
1. Woodlice attack living plants and gnaw at the stems.
木虱会侵害活体植物并啃咬它们的茎。
来自柯林斯例句
2. Dogs like to gnaw on a bone.
狗爱啃骨头.
来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
3. A rat can gnaw a hole through wood.
老鼠能啃穿木头.
来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
4. And there are those who gnaw away at our national self - respect.
而有些人逐步丢掉了我们国家的尊严.
来自辞典例句
5. You'd like that, so your conscience won't gnaw at you anymore.
