eat
verb · noun
Simple meaning
To consume by putting it into the mouth and swallowing it.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
eetIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈit
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
verb
ambitransitive
To consume (something solid or semi-solid, usually food) by putting it into the mouth and swallowing it.
Eat a meal; take a meal
“We did not eat until 10 P.M. because there were so many phone calls.”
intransitive
To consume a meal.
transitiveoften with up
To destroy, consume, or use up.
Worry or cause anxiety in a persistent way
Cause to deteriorate due to the action of water, air, or an acid
noun
colloquial
Something to be eaten; a meal; a food item.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A2 · Elementary
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: (ambitransitive) To consume (something solid or semi-solid, usually food) by putting it into the mouth and swallowing it.
Used this way, eat is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use eat
- “We did not eat until 10 P.M. because there were so many phone calls.”verb
- “This dog doesn't eat certain kinds of meat.”verb
- “She was eating a banana.”verb
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Common Patterns and Combinations
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Related Words
Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.