bit

¹

[ bit ]

noun

1. Machinery.
   1. a removable drilling or boring tool for use in a brace, drill press, or the like.
   2. a removable boring head used on certain kinds of drills, as a rock drill.
   3. a device for drilling oil wells or the like, consisting of a horizontally rotating blade or an assembly of rotating toothed wheels.
2. the mouthpiece of a bridle, having fittings at each end to which the reins are fastened.
3. anything that curbs or restrains.
4. the blade or iron of a carpenter's plane.
5. the cutting part of an ax or hatchet.
6. the wide portion at the end of an ordinary key that moves the bolt.

verb (used with object)

, bit·ted, bit·ting.

1. to put a bit in the mouth of (a horse).
2. to curb or restrain with, or as with, a bit.
3. to grind a bit on (a key).

bit

²

[ bit ]

noun

1. a small piece or quantity of anything:

   a bit of string.

   Synonyms: fragment, scrap, jot, iota, whit, grain, speck, particle

2. a short time:

   Wait a bit.

3. Informal. an amount equivalent to 12½ U.S. cents (used only in even multiples):

   two bits; six bits.

4. an act, performance, or routine:

   She's doing the Camille bit, pretending to be near collapse.

5. a stereotypic or habitual set of behaviors, attitudes, or styles associated with an individual, role, situation, etc.:

   the whole Wall Street bit.

6. 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 ).
7. any small coin:

   a threepenny bit.

8. a Spanish or Mexican silver real worth 12½ cents, formerly current in parts of the United States.

bit

³

[ bit ]

noun

, Computers.

1. 1. Also called binary digit. a single, basic unit of digital information that is represented by one of two values, such as 1 or 0, True or False, or Yes or No.
   2. the amount of computer memory required for storing such a unit of information, consisting of one of a series of identical physical components that can assume either of two states corresponding to one of two values.
2. baud. a unit used to measure the speed of signaling or data transfer, equal to the number of pulses or digital bits per second:

   bit rate.

bit

⁴

[ bit ]

verb

1. simple past tense and a past participle of bite.

B.I.T.

⁵

abbreviation for

1. Bachelor of Industrial Technology.

bit

¹

/ bɪt /

noun

1. a metal mouthpiece, for controlling a horse on a bridle
2. anything that restrains or curbs
3. take the bit in one's teeth or take the bit between one's teeth or have the bit in one's teeth or have the bit between one's teeth
   1. to undertake a task with determination
   2. to rebel against control
4. a cutting or drilling tool, part, or head in a brace, drill, etc
5. the blade of a woodworking plane
6. the part of a pair of pincers designed to grasp an object
7. the copper end of a soldering iron
8. the part of a key that engages the levers of a lock

verb

1. to put a bit in the mouth of (a horse)
2. to restrain; curb

bit

²

/ bɪt /

verb

1. the past tense and (archaic) past participle of bite

bit

³

/ bɪt /

noun

1. a small piece, portion, or quantity
2. a short time or distance
3. informal.
   the value of an eighth of a dollar: spoken of only in units of two

   two bits

4. any small coin
5. short for bit part
6. informal.
   way of behaving, esp one intended to create a particular impression

   she's doing the prima donna bit

7. a bit
   rather; somewhat

   a bit dreary

8. a bit of
   1. rather

      a bit of a dope

   2. a considerable amount

      that must take quite a bit of courage

9. a bit of all right or a bit of crumpet or a bit of stuff or a bit of tail slang.
   a sexually attractive woman
10. bit by bit
    gradually
11. bit on the side informal.
    an extramarital affair
12. do one's bit
    to make one's expected contribution
13. every bit
    foll by as to the same degree

    she was every bit as clever as her brother

14. not a bit or not a bit of it
    not in the slightest; not at all
15. to bits
    completely apart

    to fall to bits

bit

⁴

/ bɪt /

noun

1. a single digit of binary notation, represented either by 0 or by 1
2. the smallest unit of information, indicating the presence or absence of a single feature
3. 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

/ bĭt /

1. 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 .
2. See Note at byte

bit

1. 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.

Notes

The information in a digital computer is stored in the form of bits.

Other Words From

• bitless adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of bit¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English bit(t)e, bit, bete “a strike or hit, a blow with a sharp weapon; the blade, tip, or point of a weapon,” Old English bíte “bite, pain, biting pain of a wound”; cognate with German Biss, Old Norse bit; bite

Origin of bit²

First recorded before 1000; Middle English bite “a bite, mouthful, portion,” Old English bita “bit, morsel, fragment”; cognate with German Bissen, Old Norse biti; bite

Origin of bit³

First recorded in 1945–50; b(inary) + (dig)it

Word History and Origins

Origin of bit¹

Old English bita ; related to Old English bītan to bite

Origin of bit²

Old English bite action of biting; see bite

Origin of bit³

C20: from abbreviation of binary digit

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. a bit much, somewhat overdone or beyond tolerability.
2. a bit, rather or somewhat; a little:

   a bit sleepy.

3. bit by bit, by degrees; gradually:

   Having saved money bit by bit, they now had enough to buy the land.

4. do one's bit, to contribute one's share to an effort:

   They all did their bit during the war.

5. every bit, quite; just:

   every bit as good.

6. quite a bit, a fairly large amount:

   There's quite a bit of snow on the ground.

7. 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 .

Example Sentences

First a scaffold of cartilage, like the wobbly bit on the end of your nose, forms.

From BBC

Now, 43, he has a bit of a rugged edge — something that is serving him well in his latest role in the “Magic Mike”-meets-mistletoe flick “The Merry Gentlemen.”

From Los Angeles Times

In terms of the Oscars, it’s a bit early to make any assumptions about how the races will play out over the next few months.

From Los Angeles Times

“But in this case, we added a bit more dimension, so it became different from reality. I think Ms. Kuno was able to capture the performance of the characters in the animation form.”

From Los Angeles Times

But if you listen to the score, right from the opening moments composer Umberto Smerilli makes a bold declaration about what kind of movie it is: nervy, tempestuous, winking and just a little bit melodramatic.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• dose
• fragment
• item
• part
• portion
• sample
• shard
• slice
• sliver
• snippet
• taste
• trace