About
啮 (niè), also written as 嚙 or 齧 in traditional forms, is an ideogrammic compound representing the action of biting, gnawing, or chewing. Its modern structure pairs the mouth radical 口 (kǒu) on the left with the simplified character for teeth, 齿 (chǐ), on the right. This combination visually captures the literal mechanics of biting and grinding. Originally describing the basic biological function of chewing food in humans or animals, the meaning later extended to figurative uses, such as the gradual erosion of a surface, akin to how a rodent wears away at wood. Its simplified modern form replaces the complex strokes of the traditional characters, resulting in an intuitive visual of the mouth and teeth engaged in their primary function.