biting point
- noun
- UK
:
punto crítico
- The negotiations reached a biting point when both sides refused to compromise.
Examples
-
During the debate, emotions hit a biting point as tempers flared.
-
The drama in the film builds steadily toward its biting point.
-
We reached a biting point in our negotiations.
-
The team's performance hit a biting point during the final minutes.
-
During the debate, emotions hit a biting point as tempers flared.
-
The negotiations reached a biting point when both sides refused to compromise.
-
The drama in the film builds steadily toward its biting point.
Synonyms
47
6.6
A time when an important decision must be made
9
5.3
A moment when people must make an important decision
4
4.4
A moment when anger or stress becomes so strong that someone shows it
3
7.7
A time when a situation can suddenly become violent or very dangerous
Antonyms
How Critical
37
3.9
43
5.3
38
3.7
- UK
104
3.7
∞
1.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
The adjective 'biting' (sharp, severe) combined with 'point' (a stage or moment) does give a clue that the phrase refers to a moment of sharp or intense quality, so a learner could form a rough inference. However, the temporal/critical sense is a metaphorical extension and less conventional than forms like 'breaking point', so the exact meaning is not fully predictable for a B1 learner without prior exposure.
Etymology
Biting point comes from the image of teeth closing on a small point — the very instant the biting happens and hurts. So that sharp 'bite' picture shows a moment of high stress, which is why it means a 'critical' or 'intense' moment.