morsel

¹mor·sel

noun \ˈmȯr-səl\

Definition of MORSEL

1

: a small piece of food : bite

2

: a small quantity : fragment

3

a : a tasty dish

b : something delectable and pleasing

4

: a negligible person

Examples of MORSEL

1. <the chef's cuisine is so good that diners will want to savor every morsel>
2. <searching for any morsel of useful information>

Origin of MORSEL

Middle English, from Anglo-French, diminutive of mors bite, from Latin morsus, from mordēre to bite — more at mordant

First Known Use: 14th century

Related to MORSEL

Synonyms

bite, mouthful, nibble, nugget, taste, tidbit (also titbit)

Antonyms

big shot, big wheel, bigwig, eminence, figure, kahuna, kingpin, magnate, nabob, personage, somebody, VIP

Related Words

collop, medallion, noisette; nosh, snack; appetizer, canapé, hors d'oeuvre; bit, chew, crumb, dab, dribble, driblet, fleck, hint, mote, nubbin, particle, pinch, scrap, scruple, shred, smidgen (also smidgeon or smidgin or smidge), snip, snippet, speck, spot, sprinkling, suspicion, tittle, touch, trace; dash, drop; lap, lick; gulp, swallow, swig

Near Antonyms

chunk, gob, hunk, lump, slab; abundance, barrel, bucket, bushel, deal, heaps, loads, mass, mountain, peck, pile, pot, profusion, quantity, raft, scads, stack, volume, wad, wealth

Rhymes with MORSEL

dorsal

²morsel

transitive verb

morseled or morselledmorsel·ing or morsel·ling

Definition of MORSEL

: to divide into or distribute in small pieces

First Known Use of MORSEL

1598