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acerbic
(redirected from acerbically)

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a·cer·bic  (-sûrbk) also a·cerb (-sûrb)
adj.
1. Sour or bitter tasting; acid. See Synonyms at bitter.
2. Sharp or biting, as in character or expression: "At times, the playwright allows an acerbic tone to pierce through otherwise arid or flowery prose" (Alvin Klein).

[From Latin acerbus; see ak- in Indo-European roots.]

a·cerbi·cal·ly adv.

acerbic [ass-sir-bik]
Adjective
harsh or bitter: an acerbic critic [Latin acerbus sharp, sour]
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Adj.1.acerbicacerbic - sour or bitter in taste              
sour - having a sharp biting taste
2.acerbicacerbic - harsh or corrosive in tone; "an acerbic tone piercing otherwise flowery prose"; "a barrage of acid comments"; "her acrid remarks make her many enemies"; "bitter words"; "blistering criticism"; "caustic jokes about political assassination, talk-show hosts and medical ethics"; "a sulfurous denunciation"; "a vitriolic critique"
unpleasant - disagreeable to the senses, to the mind, or feelings ; "an unpleasant personality"; "unpleasant repercussions"; "unpleasant odors"

acerbic
Translations
acerbic [əˈsəːbɪk] adjacerbo;
(fig) → mordaz
acerbic [əˈsəːbɪk] adj (also fig) → acerbe
acerbic [əˈsəːbɪk] adjscharf
acerbic [əˈsəːbɪk] adj (also fig) → acido/a


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? Mentioned in ? References in periodicals archive
 
After spending several pages describing the breakdown of regular order in the passage of last year's bankruptcy bill, they note acerbically that one of the bill's problems was "atrocious drafting.
Wilson notes acerbically its effect on scholarship and teaching when he points out that "the faculties of higher education around the world are a congeries of experts.
Brown transcribes some of these laws in his Civil War history, commenting acerbically on what he views as their absolute hypocrisy: "And yet Connecticut, with her proscription of the negro, and receiving their aid in fighting her battles, retains her negro 'black laws' upon her statutebook by a vote of more than six thousand" (Brown, Negro 143).
 
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