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begnaw. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
begnaw, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
begnaw in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
begnaw you have here. The definition of the word
begnaw will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
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English
Etymology
From Middle English *begnawen, from Old English begnagan (“to begnaw, gnaw all over”), equivalent to be- + gnaw.
Pronunciation
Verb
begnaw (third-person singular simple present begnaws, present participle begnawing, simple past begnawed, past participle begnawed or begnawn)
- (transitive, archaic) To gnaw; to eat away at.
c. 1593 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedy of Richard the Third: ”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, :The worm of conscience still begnaw thy soul.
1832, Thomas Holley Chivers, The Path of Sorrow, Or, The Lament of Youth: A Poem, page 90:[…] that man might see, / What worm begnaws — that vital core concealing / All its vile, consumptive bane, […]
- 1860, William Hogarth: Painter, Engraver and Philosopher; Essays on the Man, the Work, and the Time, VII, A History of Hard Work, in The Cornhill Magazine, volume 2, issues 7-12, page 238:
- Above him hangs, all torn, tattered, and rat-begnawed, "A View of the Gold Mines of Peru."
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