Word
bitten
Phoneticsbit·ten
US/ˈbɪtən/
UK/bˈɪtən/
Definitions
01past participle of bite
v. the form of 'bite' used after 'have' or 'be'.
v. the past participle of the irregular verb 'bite', used in perfect tenses and passive constructions.
“I have been bitten by mosquitoes every night this week.”
“The researchers discovered that several subjects had been bitten by the same species of spider during the initial field study.”
Pitfall
The dog has bit the mailman.
The dog has bitten the mailman.
In modern English, 'bitten' is the standard past participle for the present perfect tense, while 'bit' is the simple past.
02having received a bite
adj. describing someone or something that has been wounded by teeth.
adj. describing a person, animal, or object that has sustained a wound or mark from teeth.
“The bitten apple turned brown after sitting on the table for an hour.”
“The veterinarian examined the bitten area carefully to determine if the wound required stitches or just a simple cleaning.”
03abruptly cut off
adj. describing a leaf or root that looks like the end was bitten off.
adj. describing a botanical structure, such as a leaf or root, that appears abruptly truncated or premorse.
“The plant is easy to identify because of its bitten root shape.”
“The specimen was classified as a specific subspecies due to its characteristic bitten leaves, which appear to end suddenly rather than tapering to a point.”
Technical
Usage
In botanical contexts, this is often a synonym for 'premorse'.
Synonyms
Etymology
Morphologically bit + -en.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Domain
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/bitten