(yǎo) — to bite; to nip

Definition

咬 (yǎo) is the general word for biting with the teeth — a dog biting, or taking a bite of food. 啃 (kěn) is gnawing on something hard like a bone or corn cob.

verb
to biteto nip

Examples

  • Tā xiǎo xīn dì yǎo le yì kǒu miàn bāo.
    He carefully took a bite of the bread.
  • Nà zhī gǒu chà diǎn yǎo dào wǒ.
    That dog almost bit me.
  • Wǒ yǎo le yì kǒu píng guǒ, jué de bú tài tián.
    I took a bite of the apple and found it not very sweet.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
jiāoyǎo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

咬 is built from 口, meaning mouth, and 交, which gives the sound.

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