nibble (away) at (something)

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nibble

A four-bit aggregation of digital information, playfully named because it is half the de facto size of a byte. Sometimes spelled as "nybble" to reflect the spelling of "byte." The compression system packs an item of information into one nibble of a byte while the other nibble is set as a destination flag. I've written a script that cycles through and replaces corrupted nybbles.

nibble (away) at (something)

1. Literally, to eat something at a slow pace and in small bites. I wonder if Mary isn't feeling well—she only nibbled at her dinner. He sat on the bench, happily nibbling away at his cookie.

2. To erode something in small increments over time. Corrosion has been nibbling away at the hull of my boat for the past few years.

3. To bite something very softly so as not to break the surface. He started nibbling at my elbows, thinking it would turn me on.

nibble at something

to take tiny bites of some kind of food. The children nibbled at their dinner because they had eaten too much candy. Stop nibbling at that candy.

nibble away at something

to eat at something in tiny bits; to erode away tiny bits of something. The waves nibbled away at the base of the cliff, year after year. The mice nibbled away at the huge wheel of cheese.

nibble at

1. To eat something by taking small bites: The mice have been nibbling at the curtains.

2. To eat a small amount of something, especially unenthusiastically: She only nibbled at her peas.

3. To bite something but not break the surface; nip at something: My date nibbled at my ear during the movie.

nibble

1. n. a cautious or preliminary response to something. (see also nybble.) My advertisement got three nibbles this morning.

2. in. to reply cautiously or tentatively to something. I hope someone who wants to buy my car nibbles at the description I posted on the Internet.

References in periodicals archive ?

Many a family day is happily spent visiting them, taking the chance to feed them and watching them scuttle away to hide the odd monkey nut or hold them in their tiny paws as they nibbles away at this welcome treasure.

alert RE d; How you can help celebrate and save our very own native red squirrel

The production features a great deal of activity on the part of the unseen doorbell - one of its first night rings disconcertingly not coming until after somebody had said that someone was at the door - and not once do we hear the sound of the offstage door being opened, which nibbles away at the already flimsy credibility of the play.

Cast make most of flimsy yarn; REVIEW OVE BEGINS AT FIFTY ighbury Little Theatre, Sutton Coldfield

The vandalism is costing us about pounds 100, which nibbles away at our funds."

Vandals attack oldest building

It's a sort of scaled-down Passat that nibbles away at Escort, Focus and Astra territory, yet feels loads more special and is much more entertaining to drive.

Quentin Willson's motoring column: I Adora Bora

A paper published earlier this year by Hong Kong's Independent Commission Against Corruption concluded that up to 5 percent of total operating costs for foreign investors in mainland China went for "gifts": a hefty surtax that nibbles away at margins and adds to commercial uncertainty.

Sullied hands and sweetheart deals

If their answer is one which constantly nibbles away at greenfield sites, then ultimately Huddersfield will at some time in the future resemble Sheffield with its hills swathed in buildings.