bit

bit
\ \ There are three distinct nouns bit in English, but the two most ancient ones are probably both related ultimately to the verb bite. Bit as in ‘drill bit’ [OE] originally meant simply ‘bite’ or ‘biting’. The Old English word, bite, came from Germanic *bitiz, a derivative of the verb *bītan ‘bite’. The ‘drill bit’ sense did not develop until the 16th century. The bit placed in a horse’s mouth is probably the same word. Bit meaning ‘small piece’ [OE] also comes from a Germanic derivative of *bītan, in this case *biton; this gave Old English bita ‘piece bitten off’. The more general sense, ‘small piece’, developed in the 16th century. The third bit, ‘unit of computer information’ [20], is a blend formed from ‘binary digit’.
\ \ Cf.⇒ BITE

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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Synonyms:
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Look at other dictionaries:

  • bit — bit …   Dictionnaire des rimes

  • bitərəfləşmə — «Bitərəfləşmək»dən f. is …   Azərbaycan dilinin izahlı lüğəti

  • Bit — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Bit es el acrónimo de Binary digit. (dígito binario). Un bit es un dígito del sistema de numeración binario. Mientras que en el sistema de numeración decimal se usan diez dígitos, en el binario se usan sólo dos… …   Wikipedia Español

  • BIT — (binary digit) Contraction de l’expression anglaise binary digit (chiffre binaire), le terme bit prend en informatique trois significations différentes. Puisqu’on se trouve ici dans un système de numération à base 2, deux symboles (habituellement …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Bit — [bɪt], das; [s], [s]: kleinste Einheit der Informationseinheit beim Computer: ein Byte besteht aus acht Bit; ein Bit steht entweder auf 0 oder auf 1. * * * bịt 〈EDV; Zeichen für〉 Bit * * * 1Bịt , das; [s], s <aber: eine Million Bits od.… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • bit — bit1 [bit] n. [ME < OE bite, a bite < bītan, BITE] 1. the part of a bridle that goes into a horse s mouth, used to control the horse: see BRIDLE 2. anything that curbs or controls 3. the part of a pipestem held in the mouth: see PIPE 4. th …   English World dictionary

  • bit — Ⅰ. bit [1] ► NOUN 1) a small piece or quantity. 2) (a bit) a short time or distance. 3) (also bit of fluff or stuff) informal a girl or young woman. ● a bit …   English terms dictionary

  • bit.ly — bit.ly …   Википедия

  • BIT — (homonymie) Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom.  Pour les articles homophones, voir Bite (homonymie) et Bitte (homonymie) …   Wikipédia en Français

  • bit — BIT, biţi, s.m. (inform.) Unitate de măsură pentru cantitatea de informaţie (3) dintr un semnal, corespunzător logaritmului în baza 2. – Din engl., fr. bit. Trimis de paula, 03.09.2007. Sursa: DEX 98  bit (unitate de informaţie) s. m., pl. biţi… …   Dicționar Român

  • Bit — Sn Binärzeichen per. Wortschatz fach. (20. Jh.) Entlehnung. Entlehnt aus ne. bit, einem Kunstwort ( blending ) aus ne. binary digit binäre Zahl . E. binary geht (wie auch nhd. binär) zurück auf l. bīnārius zwei enthaltend , zu l. bīnus je zwei ;… …   Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen sprache

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