Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

begnaw

/bɪˈnɔ/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English

Syllables: beg-naw
IPA: /bɪˈnɔ/

12

Scrabble Score

6

Letters

2

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To gnaw; to eat away at.

Archaic; Transitive verb

Example Sentences

"The worm of conscience still begnaw thy soul."
"[…] that man might see, / What worm begnaws — that vital core concealing / All its vile, consumptive bane, […]"
"Above him hangs, all torn, tattered, and rat-begnawed, "A View of the Gold Mines of Peru.""
"melancoly and begnawed palms"

Etymology

From Middle English *begnawen, from Old English begnagan (“to begnaw, gnaw all over”), equivalent to be- + gnaw.

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Prefix: be
Root: *begnawen, begnagan

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /bɪˈnɔ/
British English: /bɪˈnɔː/

Usage

Inflected Forms

begnaws (present, singular) begnawing (participle, present) begnawed (past) begnawed (participle, past) begnawn (participle, past)

Rhymes With

law saw draw raw swing saw aw shaw withdraw straw jaw thoughtful awe

Questions

How do you pronounce begnaw?: The recorded pronunciation is /bɪˈnɔ/.
What does begnaw mean?: To gnaw; to eat away at.
Where does begnaw come from?: It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce begnaw

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “begnaw”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/bɪˈnɔ/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “begnaw”.
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