Also means
to set upon
Usage Note
Accanire (and more commonly its reflexive accanirsi) means to throw oneself at something with fierce, obsessive persistence. Si è accanito contro di lui means he went after him relentlessly. The adjective accanito (e.g. un fumatore accanito — a heavy smoker) is far more frequent in everyday speech than the verb itself.
Examples
"Non devi accanirsi così sul lavoro."
Natural Translation
You shouldn't throw yourself at work so obsessively.

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