1
as in bitter
causing intense discomfort to one's skin
a biting wind that only the toughest football fans were willing to endure
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in sarcastic
marked by the use of wit that is intended to cause hurt feelings
the biting comments by the pundits about the government's inaction
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of biting
Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 10 Dec. 2025
While often lumped in with punk, the Fall experimented with multiple styles over the years, with Smith’s biting wit and inimitable delivery serving as constants.
—Keith Phipps, Vulture, 27 Nov. 2025
Dominic Cadogan, Glamour, 2 Mar. 2026
Employees unsure how to deal with 2-year-olds biting and hitting each other placed the children and their parents in medical isolation for days, McPherson and her colleague told senators.
—Arkansas Online, 1 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for biting
Adjective
The non-biting midge resembles a rice grain and survives in damp moss and algae along the Antarctic Peninsula.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 10 Dec. 2025
While often lumped in with punk, the Fall experimented with multiple styles over the years, with Smith’s biting wit and inimitable delivery serving as constants.
—Keith Phipps, Vulture, 27 Nov. 2025
Verb
In addition to damage that can occur from gel and acrylic nails, brittleness, thinning, peeling and splitting can also be caused by biting, picking, and harsh chemicals.
—Dominic Cadogan, Glamour, 2 Mar. 2026
Employees unsure how to deal with 2-year-olds biting and hitting each other placed the children and their parents in medical isolation for days, McPherson and her colleague told senators.
—Arkansas Online, 1 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for biting
Recent Examples of Synonyms for biting
Adjective
-
During that window, sour and bitter foods can taste sweet, making meals more tolerable.—
Ivan Taylor,
CBS News,
2 Mar. 2026
-
The concept was revived by Olympic officials and the United Nations in the early 1990s, as bitter conflicts raged in the Balkans.—
Brian Mann,
NPR,
1 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Gavalas was a normal guy, Edelson said – a golfer, a funny person with a sarcastic wit, a video gamer.—
Brittany Wallman
Updated March 4,
Miami Herald,
4 Mar. 2026
-
Mother of two children with her sarcastic, smart and handsome husband.—
Gerald Witt,
AJC.com,
1 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Thrips have rasping, sucking mouthparts.—
Arricca Elin SanSone,
Southern Living,
3 Mar. 2026
-
On a recent day on the river's gravel bank in sight of Denver's skyscrapers, Singel found speck after speck of gold, sucking it out of his pan with an eyedropper.—
Trevor Hughes,
USA Today,
27 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Berkshire reported a sharp decline in operating earnings for the fourth quarter, driven largely by weakness in its insurance business.—
Yun Li,
CNBC,
1 Mar. 2026
-
This sea of sharp buttes and sky-high pinnacles offers numerous west-facing vantage points.—
Stephanie Vermillion,
Outside,
1 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
As each assignee struggles under the weight of conscience, coercion, and fear, the darkly satirical story examines who draws society’s moral lines, who enforces them, and what happens when they are crossed under extreme pressure.—
Alex Ritman,
Variety,
27 Feb. 2026
-
The show, then and now, combines a sentimental, satirical, soapy, sometimes surreal comedy with a straightforward medical show.—
Television Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
24 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Those, and other comments, had surprised some onlookers, and led to author Arundhati Roy cancelling her visit to the festival and penning a stinging rebuke.—
Andreas Wiseman,
Deadline,
14 Feb. 2026
-
After a stinging loss at Wichita State over the weekend, Memphis basketball coach Penny Hardaway is still figuring out why the Tigers aren't playing their best.—
Corinne S Kennedy,
Memphis Commercial Appeal,
25 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
My grandmother started working at the age of 12 years old in a linen factory in Belfast, traveling through barbed wire and barricades every day, not to school but to a job to support her family.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
20 Feb. 2026
-
My parents were just children when they were wrested from their homes into tarpaper barracks surrounded by barbed wire.—
Julie Morita,
Chicago Tribune,
19 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
One spring day in Paris many years ago, my wife, Diana, a most penetrating photographer, capable of seeing like no one else, decided, as an experiment, to walk across the city blindfolded.—
Hisham Matar,
Harper's Magazine,
2 Aug. 2024
-
Since the war began in Gaza, more than six months ago, the Israeli magazine +972 has published some of the most penetrating reporting on the Israel Defense Forces’ conduct.—
Isaac Chotiner,
The New Yorker,
12 Apr. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Biting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/biting. Accessed 9 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
