Definition of "eat"

To ingest; to be ingested.

1. (transitive, intransitive) To consume (something solid or semi-solid, usually food) by putting it into the mouth and swallowing it.  quotations  examples

   Quotations

   • But meate commendeth vs not to God: for neither if we eate, are we the better: neither if wee eate not, are we the woꝛſe.

     1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], 1 Corinthians 8:8, column 2

   • At twilight in the summer there is never anybody to fear—man, woman, or cat—in the chambers and at that hour the mice come out. They do not eat parchment or foolscap or red tape, but they eat the luncheon crumbs.

     1892, Walter Besant, chapter II, in The Ivory Gate […], New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, […]

   • But Richmond […] appeared to lose himself in his own reflections. Some pickled crab, which he had not touched, had been removed with a damson pie; and his sister saw […] that he had eaten no more than a spoonful of that either.

     1959, Georgette Heyer, chapter 1, in The Unknown Ajax

   • Shepard: Everyone on this station is chafing under Anoleis' extortion. You might end up a hero.Lorik Qui'in: My employers rely on the goodwill of the Executive Board to work here.Wrex: If these "executives" don't blame Anoleis for provoking this, they're fools. You should eat them.

     2008, BioWare, Mass Effect (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, PC, scene: Noveria

2. (intransitive) To consume a meal.  quotations  examples

   Quotations

   • I eat in the kitchen. Audio (US)(file)

     2016, VOA Learning English (public domain)

3. (intransitive, ergative) To be eaten.  quotations  examples

   Quotations

   • I don't know any quarter in England where you get such undeniable mutton—mutton that eats like mutton, instead of the nasty watery, stringy, turnipy stuff, neither mutton nor lamb, that other countries are inundated with.

     1852, The New Monthly Magazine, page 310

   • […] dish him [the fish] with slices of oranges, barberries, grapes, gooseberries, and butter; and you will find that he eats deliriously either with farced pain or gammon pain.

     1863, J[oseph] Sheridan Le Fanu, The House by the Church-yard. […], volumes (please specify |volume=I to III), London: Tinsley, Brothers, […]

4. (copulative, intransitive) To have a particular quality of diet; to be well-fed or underfed (typically as "eat healthy" or "eat good").  examples

To use up.

1. (transitive, often with up) To destroy, consume, or use up.  quotations  examples

   Quotations

   • His wretched estate is eaten up with mortgages.

     1857–1859, W[illiam] M[akepeace] Thackeray, The Virginians. A Tale of the Last Century, volumes (please specify |volume=I or II), London: Bradbury & Evans, […], published 1858–1859

2. (transitive, programming, informal) To consume (an exception, an event, etc.) so that other parts of the program do not receive it.  quotations  examples

   Quotations

   • A bigger problem, however, is that if you catch/eat an exception and do nothing with it, you are very likely introducing subtle bugs in your application that will be next to impossible to track down.

     2005, Wallace B. McClure, Gregory A. Beamer, John J. Croft IV, Professional ADO.NET 2, page 246

3. (transitive, informal, of a device) To damage, destroy, or fail to eject a removable part or an inserted object.  quotations  examples

   Quotations

   • No! There's a problem with the cassette player. Don't press fast forward or it eats the tape!

     1991, Shane Black, The Last Boy Scout (movie)

4. (transitive, informal, of a vending machine or similar device) To consume money (or other instruments of value, such as a token) deposited or inserted by a user, while failing to either provide the intended product or service or return the payment.  quotations  examples

   Quotations

   • Hey! This stupid [soda vending] machine ate my quarter.

     1977, Nancy Dowd, Slap Shot (movie)

(transitive, informal) To cause (someone) to worry.  examples

(transitive, business) To take the loss in a transaction.  quotations  examples

(transitive, slang) To be injured or killed by (something such as a firearm or its projectile), especially in the mouth.  quotations

(transitive, intransitive) To corrode or erode.  examples

(transitive, slang) To perform oral sex (on a person or body part).

(stative, slang) To be very good; to rule; to rock.

(transitive, slang) To annex.

(colloquial) Something to be eaten; a meal; a food item.  quotations  examples