acidly

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ac·id

(ăs′ĭd)

1. Chemistry

a. Any of a class of substances whose aqueous solutions are characterized by a sour taste, the ability to turn blue litmus red, and the ability to react with bases and certain metals to form salts.

b. A substance that yields hydrogen ions when dissolved in water.

c. A substance that can act as a proton donor.

d. A substance that can accept a pair of electrons to form a covalent bond.

2. A substance having a sour taste.

3. The quality of being sarcastic, bitter, or scornful: wrote with acid about her first marriage.

4. Slang See LSD¹.

adj.

1. Chemistry

a. Of, relating to, or containing an acid.

b. Having a high concentration of acid.

c. Having the characteristics of an acid.

a. Having a pH of less than 7.

b. Having a relatively high concentration of hydrogen ions.

3. Geology Containing a large proportion of silica: acid rocks.

4. Having a sour taste. See Synonyms at sour.

5. Biting, sarcastic, or scornful: an acid wit; an acid tone of voice.

[From Latin acidus, sour, from acēre, to be sour; see ak- in Indo-European roots.]

ac′id·ly adv.

ac′id·ness n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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acidly

adverb sharply, cuttingly, bitterly, harshly, tartly, bitingly, caustically, trenchantly, pungently, mordantly, hurtfully, acerbically, acridly, stingingly 'You never did know how to be a mother,' she said acidly.
kindly, sweetly, pleasantly, mildly, blandly, gently, benignly

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

Translations

acidly

[ˈæsidlɪ] ADV [comment, reply] → mordazmente

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

acidly

[ˈæsɪdli] adv [say, ask, think] → amèrementacid rain n → pluies fpl acidesacid test n → épreuve f de vérité
an acid test of sth/sb → une épreuve de vérité pour qch/qn

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

acidly

adv (fig) → ätzend, beißend

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

acidly

[ˈæsɪdlɪ] adv → acidamente

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

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References in classic literature ?

"If that were so, he would hardly have been such a fool as to give his partner his address," I retorted acidly. "Anyhow, there's one thing I'm positive of, he didn't go away with anyone.

"All that seems to me very far-fetched," she said acidly. "I don't deny that perhaps Amy took her husband a little too much for granted.

View in context

"Well, there's one thing about me," she said acidly. "I never go where I ain't wanted."

View in context

"We're not much used to noise, Jane and me," she remarked acidly.

View in context

"I am starving," he remarked acidly, and I felt a little compunction.

View in context

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The chairperson of the SSC acidly observed that there were doctors on deputation serving as police officials in the Federal Investigation Agency, and engineers working in positions that ought to be occupied by doctors in hospitals hopefully without any requirement that they perform surgery.

More housekeeping ahead

Cyril Abiteboul, Renault's managing director, acidly replied: "Our bosses have stopped reading what Christian is saying about us since 2015.

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In his comments during the interview, the American scholar said Russian President Vladimir Putin had never made such a speech to Congress and that no foreign leader had ever attacked the policy of the US administration so acidly.

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The file, uploaded on the outlet's YouTube account, has attracted nearly 1.39 million views with 3,600 acidly critical comments (as of noon Sunday).

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The script by director Aaron Sorkin, writer of TV's The West Wing, provides her with a stream of acidly comic lines which she fires off with self-amused detachment.

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The script, Aaron of The Wing, provides stream acidly comic The real-life Molly Bloom was an Olympic-standard skier who postponed a law degree at Harvard to spend a year relaxing in the Los Angeles sunshine.