Eat away at
2 meanings · select one to explore
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Meaning 1 of 3
Definition
To gradually damage or weaken something over time
Example sentence
The guilt is eating away at him.
Real video usage
Three clips showing this meaning in natural speech.
Common collocations
Natural word pairings to memorize.
eat away at the metal
eat away at the coastline
eat away at the foundation
eat away at your confidence
eat away at him
eat away at her peace of mind
Separable usage
Can the object split the verb? Compare correct vs incorrect.
Acid ate away at the surface. ✅ (Correct)
Acid ate the surface away at. ❌ (Incorrect)