How to Use gnaw at in a Sentence

gnaw at

phrasal verb
Definition of gnaw atnext
  • There were the snakes, and the rats gnawing at the trunk.
    — Hari Kunzru, Harper's Magazine, 9 Dec. 2021
  • He is gone now, and the waves gnaw at the shore and the island slowly sinks into the sea.
    — Rafil Kroll-Zaidi, Harper's Magazine, 9 Aug. 2022
  • But something kept gnawing at her to take on the tougher challenge.
    — Sam Lubell, New York Times, 1 Mar. 2024
  • But something was gnawing at them: how did Mike Jones leave the area without a car?
    — Michelle Miller, CBS News, 6 May 2023
  • The unanswered questions continued to gnaw at Steve in the weeks that followed.
    — Allie Weintraub, ABC News, 5 Sep. 2023
  • Maira, your point about the NYC name-checking is something that’s been gnawing at me all season.
    — Meredith Blake, Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2023
  • For almost as long as Henry Louis Gates, Jr. can remember, questions about his heritage have gnawed at him.
    — Jp Mangalindan, Peoplemag, 16 Feb. 2024
  • What gnaws at Romero’s self-worth is the same cruel trick played on Boomer computer techies, sales reps and accountants across the corporate landscape.
    — Mark Kiszla, The Denver Post, 4 Jan. 2024
  • What’s next Putin thinks the West is fractured and fractious, and will eventually permit him to gnaw at the weak points in its society and its defenses.
    — Trudy Rubin, Twin Cities, 15 May 2024
  • Still, the idea of letting a rival come in to woo away viewers is a bit of a risk — a move tantamount to a homeowner letting termites come into a house and gnaw at its innards.
    — Brian Steinberg, Variety, 24 Sep. 2023
  • Scissors gnawed at stems, razors sliced wrapping paper, and water slapped against dozens of empty vases.
    — Emily Davies, Washington Post, 14 Feb. 2024
  • Three orcas, the large black-and-white dolphins also known as killer whales, worked in tandem; a large orca rammed the boat from the side while two smaller ones gnawed at the rudder until it was destroyed and the yacht was taking on water.
    — Rachel Riederer, The New Yorker, 28 Dec. 2023
  • Fellow chainsaw artist Evelyn Mogren has also been working to carve a wooden tableau of nature, featuring two bears playing, a beaver gnawing at a tree stump, and a fox chasing a rabbit for the town.
    — Thomas Goodwin Smith, Baltimore Sun, 22 Apr. 2024
  • But unlike in 1990, the political class lacks the leadership to tackle structural issues gnawing at the heart of the country’s competitiveness.
    — William Wilkes, Bloomberg.com, 25 May 2023
  • An inescapable hunger gnawed at his frequently empty stomach, and requests for food were often met with indifference if not open hostility.
    — Sarah Yang, Sunset Magazine, 2 Feb. 2023
  • But political conflict is gnawing at those relationships.
    — Ali Martin, The Christian Science Monitor, 18 Oct. 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gnaw at.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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