Definitions
(literary) to gnaw; to bite
Etymology
About
The character 龁, meaning to bite or gnaw, is a phono-semantic compound consisting of the semantic component 齿 (tooth) and the phonetic component 乞, with its traditional form written as 齕 using the traditional variant 齒 for tooth. Its etymology directly associates it with actions performed by the teeth, and the character's meaning has consistently referred to biting or gnawing without broadening or shifting into other semantic domains over its documented history.
Etymology Hide
