1
as in bitter
causing intense discomfort to one's skin
a biting wind that only the toughest football fans were willing to endure
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2
as in sarcastic
marked by the use of wit that is intended to cause hurt feelings
the biting comments by the pundits about the government's inaction
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Recent Examples of biting
Frederick Dreier, Outside Online, 1 Oct. 2024
Even more biting is the newest cover of The Economist, which contains only an image of a walker emblazoned with the presidential seal.
—Tom Tapp, Deadline, 4 July 2024
Lindsay Curtis, Health, 3 Oct. 2024
Facebook / East Haven Police Department A man has been arrested after allegedly punching a pregnant woman and biting a medic’s hand in a violent carjacking attempt at a Dunkin’ Donuts drive-thru in Connecticut, police said.
—Jon Haworth, ABC News, 3 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for biting 
Adjective
Think of Yellowstone’s backcountry as nature’s answer to the U.S. House of Representatives, only with slightly more biting and scratching.
—Frederick Dreier, Outside Online, 1 Oct. 2024
Even more biting is the newest cover of The Economist, which contains only an image of a walker emblazoned with the presidential seal.
—Tom Tapp, Deadline, 4 July 2024
Verb
Most fingernail ridges are not a cause for concern and develop due to aging or physical trauma to the nail (such as biting your nails).
—Lindsay Curtis, Health, 3 Oct. 2024
Facebook / East Haven Police Department A man has been arrested after allegedly punching a pregnant woman and biting a medic’s hand in a violent carjacking attempt at a Dunkin’ Donuts drive-thru in Connecticut, police said.
—Jon Haworth, ABC News, 3 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for biting
Recent Examples of Synonyms for biting
Adjective
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Cooking with beer concentrates its flavors, amplifying any bitter notes.Sarah Martens, Better Homes & Gardens, 30 Nov. 2024
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Anyone who requires evidence need only look at Steve Cooper, who found to his detriment that crossing the bitter East Midlands divide from Nottingham Forest to Leicester City was an insurmountable task.Zak Garner-Purkis, Forbes, 30 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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The comment quickly spread like wildfire online, causing much confusion about if his comment was sarcastic or a dig at the country crooner.Amber Corrine, VIBE.com, 22 Nov. 2024
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While the main cast all reprised their roles, Rapp’s Leighton Murray, the ultra-wealthy, sarcastic sorority girl whose journey of self-discovery was central to the first two seasons, is bidding her farewell.Jordana Comiter, People.com, 21 Nov. 2024
Verb
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Until then, blood-sucking bat-men were something only Europeans had to worry about, as Dracula and his castle-dwelling kin preyed on hapless villagers half a world away.Peter Debruge, Variety, 3 Oct. 2024
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The current Magpie wouldn’t get ten steps underground without sucking on a bottle of liquor.Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 2 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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The 33-megapixel sensor is capable of incredibly sharp images, with excellent dynamic range and great autofocus.Scott Gilbertson, WIRED, 29 Nov. 2024
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Leaves and twigs browsed by deer have a shredded appearance rather than the sharp, clean cut left by such animals as rabbits.Luke Miller, Better Homes & Gardens, 29 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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Mann at his most satiric has Settembrini contributing an essay to a multivolume project whose purpose is to end suffering.George Packer, The Atlantic, 5 Nov. 2024
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Others are satiric vignettes—pointed takedowns of sham humanitarians, sham foreign journalists, sham white saviors and their sham schemes to save the continent—whose villains can read more like stock inventions than like surprising ones.Alexis Okeowo, The New Yorker, 30 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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One spring day in Paris many years ago, my wife, Diana, a most penetrating photographer, capable of seeing like no one else, decided, as an experiment, to walk across the city blindfolded.Hisham Matar, Harper's Magazine, 21 June 2024
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Since the war began in Gaza, more than six months ago, the Israeli magazine +972 has published some of the most penetrating reporting on the Israel Defense Forces’ conduct.Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 12 Apr. 2024
Adjective
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The doll’s custom packaging showcases illustrations of Karol G in the iconic Bratz style, complete with an iridescent barbed wire display.Ingrid Fajardo, Billboard, 25 Nov. 2024
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Prior to the opening of the trail, the site of the northern headquarters of the 40,000-acre cattle ranch operation was little more than a few acres of nameless bullet-riddled stuff wrapped in a tangle of barbed wire.Mare Czinar, The Arizona Republic, 14 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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Some of the most piercing instances in Emilia’s journey rely on Audiard’s penchant for indelible imagery.Manuel Betancourt, Los Angeles Times, 29 Oct. 2024
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On a separate platform to the right of the action, three male chanters sit in a neat row, next to men playing the shamisen, a stringed instrument with a raw and piercing tone which is often used in vocal accompaniment.Jennifer Homans, The New Yorker, 28 Oct. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Biting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/biting. Accessed 3 Dec. 2024.
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