Definitions for: Bitter


[n] the property of having a harsh unpleasant taste
[n] the taste experience when quinine or coffee is taken into the mouth
[n] (British) dry sharp-tasting ale with strong flavor of hops
[adv] extremely and sharply; "it was bitterly cold"; "bitter cold"
[adj] marked by strong resentment or cynicism; "an acrimonious dispute"; "bitter about the divorce"
[adj] proceeding from or exhibiting great hostility or animosity; "a bitter struggle"; "bitter enemies"
[adj] expressive of severe grief or regret; "shed bitter tears"
[adj] causing a sharply painful or stinging sensation; used especially of cold; "bitter cold"; "a biting wind"
[adj] 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"
[adj] one of the four basic taste sensations; sharp and disagreeable; like the taste of quinine
[adj] very difficult to accept or bear; "the bitter truth"; "a bitter sorrow"
[v] make bitter



Webster (1913) Definition: Bit"ter, n. [See Bitts.] (Naut.)
AA turn of the cable which is round the bitts.

Bitter end, that part of a cable which is abaft the bitts,
and so within board, when the ship rides at anchor.


Bit"ter, a. [AS. biter; akin to Goth. baitrs, Icel.
bitr, Dan., Sw., D., & G. bitter, OS. bittar, fr. root of E.
bite. See Bite, v. t.]
1. Having a peculiar, acrid, biting taste, like that of
wormwood or an infusion of hops; as, a bitter medicine;
bitter as aloes.

2. Causing pain or smart; piercing; painful; sharp; severe;
as, a bitter cold day.

3. Causing, or fitted to cause, pain or distress to the mind;
calamitous; poignant.

It is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast
forsaken the Lord thy God. --Jer. ii. 19.

4. Characterized by sharpness, severity, or cruelty; harsh;
stern; virulent; as, bitter reproach.

Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against
them. --Col. iii.
19.

5. Mournful; sad; distressing; painful; pitiable.

The Egyptians . . . made their lives bitter with
hard bondage. --Ex. i. 14.

Bitter apple, Bitter cucumber, Bitter gourd. (Bot.) See
Colocynth.

Bitter cress (Bot.), a plant of the genus Cardamine, esp.
C. amara.

Bitter earth (Min.), tale earth; calcined magnesia.

Bitter principles (Chem.), a class of substances, extracted
from vegetable products, having strong bitter taste but
with no sharply defined chemical characteristics.

Bitter salt, Epsom salts; magnesium sulphate.

Bitter vetch (Bot.), a name given to two European
leguminous herbs, Vicia Orobus and Ervum Ervilia.

To the bitter end, to the last extremity, however
calamitous.

Syn: Acrid; sharp; harsh; pungent; stinging; cutting; severe;
acrimonious.


Bit"ter, n.
Any substance that is bitter. See Bitters.


Bit"ter, v. t.
To make bitter. --Wolcott.

Synonyms: acerb, acerbic, acid, acrid, acrimonious, biting, bitingly, bitterly, bitterness, bitterness, blistering, caustic, hostile, intolerable, painful, piercingly, resentful, sorrowful, sulfurous, sulphurous, tasteful, unpleasant, venomous, virulent, vitriolic

See Also: acerbity, acridity, acridness, ale, change taste, gustatory perception, gustatory sensation, pungency, sharpness, taste, taste perception, taste property, taste sensation

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