eat away

an jemandem nagen, quälen

Jemanden lange durch Sorgen oder Schuldgefühle belasten.

In einfachem Englisch: To make someone feel worried or guilty for a long time.

• Guilt was eating away at him.
• That unanswered question has eaten away at me for years.
• Does regret still eat away at you?

So benutzt man es: eat away at someone (The secret was eating away at her.)

Synonyme: gnaw at, trouble, torment

Häufige Wendungen: eat away inside, eat away constantly

zerfressen, abtragen

Festes Material nach und nach beschädigen und teilweise beseitigen.

In einfachem Englisch: To slowly damage and remove part of a solid material.

• Rust ate away the metal.
• The waves are eating away at the beach.
• Much of the stone had been eaten away by rain.

So benutzt man es: eat away something (Acid can eat away the metal.); eat away at something (Waves ate away at the cliff.); be eaten away by something (The pipes were eaten away by rust.)

Synonyme: erode, corrode, wear away

Häufige Wendungen: eat away metal, eat away stone, eat away something

untergraben, aufzehren

Etwas Wertvolles wie Vertrauen, Geld oder Selbstvertrauen nach und nach schwächen oder aufbrauchen.

In einfachem Englisch: To slowly reduce or destroy something valuable, such as trust, money, or confidence.

• Fees eat away our savings.
• Repeated lies ate away at their trust.
• Will rising costs eat away all our profits?

So benutzt man es: eat away at something (Constant arguments ate away at their friendship.); eat away something (Bank fees eat away our savings.)

Synonyme: erode, undermine, deplete

Häufige Wendungen: eat away confidence, eat away savings, eat away trust