Example sentence:
I cut another bit of meat and nibble at/on it.
What's the correct preposition? I aske because Google shows that both are used.
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It would help if you provided more details about what you searched for and what you found out when you checked Google.– J.R. ♦Commented Feb 17, 2017 at 10:49
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3 Answers
It is not really necessary to use either preposition. This sentence is fine without a preposition:
I cut another bit of meat and nibble it.
If I wanted to focus on the comsumption of something, I would use on, in the same way as one can dine on something.
If I wanted to focus on the effect it has on the thing that is being nibbled- the removal of small pieces from the edge or surface of it- I would use at, in the same way as a cat might scratch at a door.
answered Feb 17, 2017 at 12:47
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1Or, one could go in other direction, and use nibble away at.– J.R. ♦Commented Feb 17, 2017 at 16:51
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@J.R. again, that's about the effect it's having on the thing that's being nibbled: "Beware of hidden costs that can nibble away at your budget.". Commented Feb 17, 2017 at 23:52
Although both the idioms "to nibble at something" and "to nibble on something" have the meaning of eating by small bites, in the former that something is always some kind of food, whereas in the latter it may also be something that you bite but not break its surface.
Examples:
The rabbit nibbled on/at a carrot.
Fish were nibbling at the bait
He nibbled nervously on his fingernail.
So regarding your sentence, there's no difference; although I'd prefer "nibble at".
answered Feb 17, 2017 at 10:56
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It is possible to nibble things besides food, though (for example, nibbling at a problem is idiomatic speech). Also, see Collins, definition 4.– J.R. ♦Commented Feb 17, 2017 at 16:49
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@Rompe, It's misguiding to say that "at" is always used for some kind of food. See this ngram– KhanCommented Feb 18, 2017 at 10:52
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@Khan - That’s a common pitfall when we rely on (and put too much stock in) a single dictionary definition.– J.R. ♦Commented Feb 18, 2017 at 11:02
If you eat something slowly or with small bites, you can use the verb nibble without a preposition or with the preposition at/on, without any difference in meaning: So you can say:
I cut another bit of meat and nibbled it.
I cut another bit of meat and nibbled at/on it.
Besides, you can also use nibble, nibble at, or nibble on, when you gently bite a part of someone's body. For example:
He nibbled/nibbled at/nibbled on her neck affectionately.
When you show a slight interest in an idea or offer, you can use "nibble at" as follows:
I nibbled at the idea.
The nibble with the preposition "at" is also used to convey the sense that something affects somethiny or causes something to disappear gradually as follIows:
The police have been nibbling at crime in the city for 2 years.
Inflation is nibbling at our purchasing power.
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2Where is the evidence that "at" is more common than "on"? And does that even make a difference in the O.P.'s context?– J.R. ♦Commented Feb 17, 2017 at 10:44
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