as in to erode
to consume or wear away gradually
time has gnawed that author's reputation to the point where he rates little more than a footnote
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Recent Examples of gnaw
Long-suffering Chicago Bulls fans might have felt a gnawing feeling during the NBA Draft Lottery.
—
Darnell Mayberry, New York Times, 13 May 2025
What begins as a quiet sense of disconnection can spiral into a gnawing belief that something is wrong.
—Benjamin Laker, Forbes.com, 17 June 2025
That morning, Elissa couldn’t avoid a gnawing feeling in her gut because the MRI results hadn’t posted to her patient portal.
—Kristen Jordan Shamus, USA Today, 19 May 2025
Sifting through the debris of a 125-93 rout at Paycom Center, Nikola Jokic identified a gnawing concern when comparing the Nuggets to the remaining teams in the playoffs.
—Troy Renck, Denver Post, 18 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for gnaw
Darnell Mayberry, New York Times, 13 May 2025
What begins as a quiet sense of disconnection can spiral into a gnawing belief that something is wrong.
—Benjamin Laker, Forbes.com, 17 June 2025
That morning, Elissa couldn’t avoid a gnawing feeling in her gut because the MRI results hadn’t posted to her patient portal.
—Kristen Jordan Shamus, USA Today, 19 May 2025
Sifting through the debris of a 125-93 rout at Paycom Center, Nikola Jokic identified a gnawing concern when comparing the Nuggets to the remaining teams in the playoffs.
—Troy Renck, Denver Post, 18 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for gnaw
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gnaw
Verb
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Inflation is an inevitable economic reality that erodes your purchasing power over time.—
Prasanna Kumar,
Forbes.com,
23 July 2025
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But the context in which the show is premiering makes this a surreal project, where legal rights and principles we were once told were sacrosanct are being eroded.—
Nina Metz,
Chicago Tribune,
23 July 2025
Verb
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The successful hatchings come about a year after Scout ate two of his chicks as a first-time dad, leaving the pair with no surviving eaglets from their first nesting season, McClatchy News previously reported.—
Olivia Lloyd,
Miami Herald,
24 Mar. 2025
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The calls came while eating lunch, while lying in bed at night.—
Max Klaver,
Miami Herald,
24 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Gnaw.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gnaw. Accessed 5 Aug. 2025.
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