forgnaw

F4O1R1G2N1A1W4

verb

To gnaw in pieces; eat up.

OriginMiddle English forgnawen ← Old English forgnagan →
Scrabble 14
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Meanings

verbforgnaw (third-person singular simple present forgnaws, present participle forgnawing, simple past and past participle forgnawed)

present singular third person forgnaws · participle present forgnawing · participle past forgnawed · past forgnawed

  1. obsoletetransitiveTo gnaw in pieces; eat up.

Origin

  1. Old Englishforgnagan“to eat up”
  2. Middle Englishforgnawen
  3. Englishforgnaw

From Middle English forgnawen, forgnaȝen, from Old English forgnagan (“to eat up”), equivalent to for- + gnaw.

More words from Middle English, Old English

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

forgnaw. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/forgnaw

MLA

“forgnaw.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/forgnaw. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “forgnaw,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/forgnaw.

Source: forgnaw on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.