bite verb
1 use your teeth
ADV. badly Their cat was badly bitten by a dog. | off He bit off a chunk of bread.
PREP. at He bit at his lower lip. | into She bit into the apple. | through The dog had bitten right through its rope.
PHRASES bite sth in half/two
2 have an effect
ADV. deep, hard As the recession bites harder, many small companies are going bankrupt.
VERB + BITE begin to, start to After two cold months, the coal shortage was beginning to bite.