peck at

peck at — 慣用語

1. to eat only a very small amount of a meal because you are not hungry, do not fin

1.慣用語不及物B1
釋義

吃幾口

因食慾差或心情不好而只吃少量

to eat only a very small amount of a meal because you are not hungry, do not find the food interesting, or feel too upset to have a proper appetite.

例句

Luca just sat at the table and pecked at his dinner without saying a word.

Luca 只是坐在桌前吃了幾口晚餐,一句話也沒說。

peck at + food; emotional cause (upset)

After hearing the bad news, Yuki pecked at her lunch and pushed the plate away.

Yuki 聽到壞消息後,只吃了幾口午餐就把盤子推開了。

常見搭配
  • peck at dinner
  • peck at lunch
  • peck at food
  • peck at meal
  • peck at plate
同義詞
  • pick at

    more common in American English; identical meaning about food

  • nibble

    suggests very small bites, not necessarily reluctance

反義詞
  • devour

    eat eagerly and in large quantities

  • wolf down

    eat very quickly and greedily

文法句型

peck at + food/meal

用法筆記

This sense is labeled as both an idiom and a phrasal verb in different dictionaries — all referring to the same reluctant-eating behaviour. The cause can be emotional (sadness, stress, disinterest in the food) or physiological (low appetite, illness, feeling full). The object must be a specific meal or food item, never an abstract concept.

常見錯誤

She pecked her dinner.
She pecked at her dinner.
the preposition 'at' is required.
She pecked at her work all afternoon.
She pecked at her food all afternoon.
peck at is only used for eating, not for other activities.

peck at — 動詞