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bit
1[ bit ]
noun
- Machinery.
- a removable drilling or boring tool for use in a brace, drill press, or the like.
- a removable boring head used on certain kinds of drills, as a rock drill.
- a device for drilling oil wells or the like, consisting of a horizontally rotating blade or an assembly of rotating toothed wheels.
- the mouthpiece of a bridle, having fittings at each end to which the reins are fastened.
- anything that curbs or restrains.
- the blade or iron of a carpenter's plane.
- the cutting part of an ax or hatchet.
- the wide portion at the end of an ordinary key that moves the bolt.
verb (used with object)
- to put a bit in the mouth of (a horse).
- to curb or restrain with, or as with, a bit.
- to grind a bit on (a key).
bit
2[ bit ]
noun
- a small piece or quantity of anything:
a bit of string.
Synonyms: fragment, scrap, jot, iota, whit, grain, speck, particle
- a short time:
Wait a bit.
- Informal. an amount equivalent to 12½ U.S. cents (used only in even multiples):
two bits; six bits.
- an act, performance, or routine:
She's doing the Camille bit, pretending to be near collapse.
- a stereotypic or habitual set of behaviors, attitudes, or styles associated with an individual, role, situation, etc.:
the whole Wall Street bit.
- Also called bit part. a very small role, as in a play or motion picture, containing few or no lines. Compare walk-on ( def 1 ).
- any small coin:
a threepenny bit.
- a Spanish or Mexican silver real worth 12½ cents, formerly current in parts of the United States.
bit
3[ bit ]
noun
- Also called binary digit. a single, basic unit of information, used in connection with computers and information theory.
- baud.
bit
4[ bit ]
verb
- simple past tense and a past participle of bite.
B.I.T.
5abbreviation for
- Bachelor of Industrial Technology.
bit
2/ bɪt /
noun
- a single digit of binary notation, represented either by 0 or by 1
- the smallest unit of information, indicating the presence or absence of a single feature
- a unit of capacity of a computer, consisting of an element of its physical structure capable of being in either of two states, such as a switch with on and off positions, or a microscopic magnet capable of alignment in two directions
bit
3/ bɪt /
noun
- a metal mouthpiece, for controlling a horse on a bridle
- anything that restrains or curbs
- take the bit in one's teethtake the bit in one's teethtake the bit between one's teethhave the bit in one's teethhave the bit between one's teeth
- to undertake a task with determination
- to rebel against control
- a cutting or drilling tool, part, or head in a brace, drill, etc
- the blade of a woodworking plane
- the part of a pair of pincers designed to grasp an object
- the copper end of a soldering iron
- the part of a key that engages the levers of a lock
verb
- to put a bit in the mouth of (a horse)
- to restrain; curb
bit
4/ bɪt /
noun
- a small piece, portion, or quantity
- a short time or distance
- informal.the value of an eighth of a dollar: spoken of only in units of two
two bits
- any small coin
- See bit partshort for bit part
- informal.way of behaving, esp one intended to create a particular impression
she's doing the prima donna bit
- a bita bit rather; somewhat
a bit dreary
- a bit ofa bit of
- rather
a bit of a dope
- a considerable amount
that must take quite a bit of courage
- a bit of all right slang.a bit of all righta bit of crumpeta bit of stuffa bit of tail a sexually attractive woman
- bit by bitbit by bit gradually
- bit on the side informal.bit on the side an extramarital affair
- do one's bitdo one's bit to make one's expected contribution
- every bitevery bit foll by as to the same degree
she was every bit as clever as her brother
- not a bitnot a bitnot a bit of it not in the slightest; not at all
- to bitsto bits completely apart
to fall to bits
bit
/ bĭt /
- The smallest unit of computer memory. A bit holds one of two possible values, either of the binary digits 0 or 1. The term comes from the phrase binary digit .
- See Note at byte
bit
- The smallest unit of information. One bit corresponds to a “yes” or “no.” Some examples of a bit of information: whether a light is on or off, whether a switch (like a transistor ) is on or off, whether a grain of magnetized iron points up or down.
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Notes
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Other Words From
- bitless adjective
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Word History and Origins
Origin of bit1
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Word History and Origins
Origin of bit1
Origin of bit2
Origin of bit3
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Idioms and Phrases
- a bit much, somewhat overdone or beyond tolerability.
- a bit, rather or somewhat; a little:
a bit sleepy.
- bit by bit, by degrees; gradually:
Having saved money bit by bit, they now had enough to buy the land.
- do one's bit, to contribute one's share to an effort:
They all did their bit during the war.
- every bit, quite; just:
every bit as good.
- quite a bit, a fairly large amount:
There's quite a bit of snow on the ground.
- take the bit in / between one's teeth, to cast off control; willfully go one's own way:
He took the bit in his teeth and acted against his parents' wishes.
More idioms and phrases containing bit
In addition to the idiom beginning with bit , also see a bit ; champ at the bit ; do one's bit ; every bit ; not a bit ; quite a bit ; take the bit in one's mouth ; two bits .Discover More
Example Sentences
This one is perhaps a bit too complex to capture in a sentence or two, so see our previous coverage of NDB here.
As a result, the waves travel a bit faster when the water is warmer.
She is juggling a lot and is plowing through, but wants to take care of herself naturally and sometimes a bit indulgently.
Elsewhere, the software feels a bit zippier than on the Series 5, thanks to Apple’s improved S6 processor chip.
At the time of the 1790 census, Virginia had a bit less than 13 times the population of Delaware.
In a bit of foreshadowing, he repeated that opinion in November.
Even the hot Jewish women I mentioned above did something a bit more “intellectual” than pageantry: acting.
His peers remember him as a bright man who spoke softly and occasionally came across as a bit shy.
She narrowed her eyes, bit her lip as if to chew over the question, and whisked some stray blond hairs away from her face.
It reminded me a bit of an alternative take on The Wolf of Wall Street—through the Toni and Candace lens.
After a bit of waiting, Mac decided that the smoke was floating from a certain direction, and we began to edge carefully that way.
The sudden pall of darkness in this strange house of mystery was just a tiny bit awesome.
Things looked anxious for a bit, but by this morning's dawn all are dug in, cool, confident.
Nogués and his brave lads have done their bit indeed for the glory of the Army of France.
Kum Kale has been a brilliant bit of work, though I fear we have lost nearly a quarter of our effectives.
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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