NIBBLE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does nibble mean? 

• NIBBLE (noun)
  The noun NIBBLE has 2 senses:

1. a small byte

2. gentle biting

  Familiarity information: NIBBLE used as a noun is rare.

• NIBBLE (verb)
  The verb NIBBLE has 3 senses:

1. bite off very small pieces

2. bite gently

3. eat intermittently; take small bites of

  Familiarity information: NIBBLE used as a verb is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• NIBBLE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A small byte

Classified under:

Nouns denoting quantities and units of measure

Synonyms:

nibble; nybble

Hypernyms ("nibble" is a kind of...):

computer memory unit (a unit for measuring computer memory)

Holonyms ("nibble" is a part of...):

byte (a sequence of 8 bits (enough to represent one character of alphanumeric data) processed as a single unit of information)

Derivation:

nibble (eat intermittently; take small bites of)

nibble (bite off very small pieces)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Gentle biting

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Hypernyms ("nibble" is a kind of...):

bite; chomp (the act of gripping or chewing off with the teeth and jaws)

Derivation:

nibble (bite gently)

• NIBBLE (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they nibble    ... he / she / it nibbles   
Past simple: nibbled   
Past participle: nibbled   
-ing form: nibbling   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Bite off very small pieces

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Context example:

She nibbled on her cracker

Hypernyms (to "nibble" is one way to...):

bite; seize with teeth (to grip, cut off, or tear with or as if with the teeth or jaws)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s PP

Derivation:

nibble (a small byte)

nibbler (a biter who takes dainty repeated bites)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Bite gently

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Context example:

The woman tenderly nibbled at her baby's ear

Hypernyms (to "nibble" is one way to...):

bite; seize with teeth (to grip, cut off, or tear with or as if with the teeth or jaws)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s PP

Derivation:

nibble (gentle biting)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Eat intermittently; take small bites of

Classified under:

Verbs of eating and drinking

Synonyms:

nibble; pick; piece

Context example:

She never eats a full meal--she just nibbles

Hypernyms (to "nibble" is one way to...):

eat (take in solid food)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sentence example:

They nibble more bread

Derivation:

nibble (a small byte)

nibbler (a biter who takes dainty repeated bites)

 Context examples 

From this tin receptacle Jo produced another manuscript, and putting both in her pocket, crept quietly downstairs, leaving her friends to nibble on her pens and taste her ink.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

Hansel reached up above, and broke off a little of the roof to try how it tasted, and Gretel leant against the window and nibbled at the panes.

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)

Spruce twigs are an important winter food for snowshoe hares; when the hares can get at them, these herbivores may nibble every branch in sight.

(Race across the tundra: White spruce vs. snowshoe hare, National Science Foundation)

This foraging partnership was recorded in print as early as 1588, when a Portuguese missionary in what is now Mozambique observed a small brown bird slipping into his church to nibble his wax candles.

(How humans and wild Honeyguide birds call each other to help, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

Something was making him nibble at the edge of stale ideas as if his sturdy physical egotism no longer nourished his peremptory heart.

(The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald)