eat

A1 Beginner Oxford US //ˈit// UK //ˈiːt// eat

General-service Informal Slang

v. to put food into your mouth and swallow it. You do this when you are hungry or at mealtimes.

v. to consume food by putting it into the mouth and swallowing it. Often used intransitively when referring to the general act of having a meal.

SIMPLE

I like to eat fresh fruit for breakfast.

CONTEXTUAL

We usually eat dinner together as a family around seven o'clock in the evening.

COMPLEX

While some people prefer to eat small snacks throughout the day, others find that three structured meals provide better energy levels for demanding physical work.

Synonyms

Etymology 1

From Middle English eten, from Old English etan (“to eat”), from Proto-West Germanic etan, from Proto-Germanic etaną (“to eat”), from Proto-Indo-European h₁édti, from h₁ed- (“to eat”). Cognates Cognate with Scots ait (“to eat”), Yola ayth, eight (“to eat”), North Frisian iidj, iit, ää'e, ääre, ääse (“to eat”), Saterland Frisian iete, íete (“to eat”), West Frisian ite (“to eat”), Alemannic German asse, assu, essen, ässe, ässä (“to eat”), Bavarian eisn, essn, èssn (“to eat”), Cimbrian èssan, èzzan (“to eat”), Dutch, Low German eten (“to eat”), German essen (“to eat”), Luxembourgish iessen (“to eat”), Mòcheno èssn (“to eat”), Vilamovian aosa (“to eat”), Yiddish עסן (esn, “to eat”), Danish æde (“to eat”), Elfdalian jätå (“to eat”), Faroese eta (“to eat”), Icelandic eta, éta (“to eat”), Norwegian Bokmål ete (“to eat”), Norwegian Nynorsk eta, ete, åtå (“to eat”), Swedish äta (“to eat”), Gothic 𐌹𐍄𐌰𐌽 (itan, “to eat”).

Etymology 2

From Middle English ete, ate, æte, from Old English ǣt (“food, eating”), from Proto-West Germanic āt, from Proto-Germanic ētą (“food, thing to eat”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁ed- (“to eat”). Cognate with West Frisian iten (“food”), Saterland Frisian Íeten (“food”), German Aas (“carrion”), Vilamovian aosa (“food”), Icelandic át (“eating; solid food”).

Usage

The verb is both transitive and intransitive.

Idioms36 entries