What does morsel mean?
A morsel is a small piece of food, such as a fragment of bread or a bite-sized portion of a dish. The word can also describe a very small amount of something more abstract, including comfort, reassurance, evidence, truth, or hope. For example, someone might speak of receiving a morsel of comfort after a difficult day or of finding only a morsel of information in an otherwise unexplained account. Although "morsel" is often associated with food, its figurative sense is especially useful when the available amount of something is deliberately described as small. The expression can suggest scarcity, sufficiency within that limitation, or simply a tiny quantity. Its distinctive history and slightly traditional tone make it more evocative than general words such as "piece" or "bit," particularly in formal or literary writing.
nounA small piece of food or a small portion of something. By extension, it can refer to a tiny amount of a nonphysical thing, such as comfort, hope, or evidence.
- A small piece of food, especially one cut or broken from a larger portion.
- A very small amount or portion of something, often something intangible such as comfort, hope, information, or evidence.
"She accepted a morsel of comfort from the reassurance of her friend."
"He took a small morsel of bread from the plate."
"The account offered only a morsel of evidence about the company's finances."
The plural is "morsels." As a countable noun, it normally takes an article or another determiner, as in "a morsel" or "two morsels."
"He left three small morsels of bread on the plate."
A morsel began as a bite-sized piece of food, but the word now survives in expressions as small as a morsel of hope.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of morsel
The word entered English in the late Middle English period from French "morsel," meaning a small piece or bite. French "morsel" is a diminutive of "mors," "bite," which derives from Latin "morsus," the past participle of "mordere," meaning "to bite." The same Latin root underlies cognates including the English words "mordant" and "mordacious," as well as the rare noun "morsure," meaning a bite.
How morsel is actually used
The word is neutral in register when referring literally to food. Its figurative use, especially in phrases such as "a morsel of comfort" or "a morsel of truth," often has a literary or slightly traditional tone.
Easily confused with morsel
A morsel is a small piece of food or a small portion, whereas a mortise is a recess or cavity cut into wood or stone to receive a tenon.