Introduction
You know what ‘bite’ means – it’s when we close our teeth around something, like an apple. But did you know there are also some common English phrases with the word ‘bite’? Learn some of them here with Beth.
bite your tongue
stop yourself saying something you want to say, because it might be upsetting or inappropriate
- I could see Mum was biting her tongue when my sister was talking about getting a new dog – she thinks she already has too many.
bite off more than you can chew
commit to doing something that you cannot complete
- I’ve said ‘yes’ to too many plans and now I don’t have any time for myself – I’ve definitely bitten off more than I can chew.
bite-sized
small enough to eat in one (food); small or short and easy to understand (information)
- She separated her speech into bite-sized chunks so that it was easy for the audience to follow.
bite the bullet
finally decide to do something you’ve been avoiding for a while because it’s unpleasant
- I’ve been trying to book that holiday for weeks, but I keep getting distracted – I just need to bite the bullet.
TRANSCRIPT
Note: This is not a word-for-word transcript.
Georgie
Let me bite into this apple. Mmm… delicious!
If you bite your tongue, you stop yourself saying something you want to say because it might be upsetting or inappropriate.
I want to tell him I don’t like his hoodie, but he likes it so I’ll bite my tongue.
If you bite off more than you can chew, you commit to doing something that you cannot complete.
I always bite off more than I can chew at work. I need to be more realistic with the number of projects I take on.
If food is bite-sized, it’s small enough to eat in one. If information is bite-sized, it’s small or short and easy to understand.
Don’t learn hundreds of phrases at once – it’s better to learn vocabulary in bite-sized chunks.
Lastly, bite the bullet – that means you finally decide to do something you’ve been avoiding for a while because it’s unpleasant.
I know you hate going to the dentist, but you need to just bite the bullet and book an appointment.
Now, try practising these phrases this week!