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vitriolic definition

vit·ri·olic (vi′trē äl′ik)

adjective

  1. of, like, or derived from a vitriol
  2. extremely biting or caustic; sharp and bitter vitriolic talk

Etymology: Fr vitriolique

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

vitriolic Synonyms

vitriolic

modif.

biting, bitter, burning, sharp, caustic; see also sarcastic.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

vitriolic Usage Examples

Modifies a noun

  • attack: However, when I witness vitriolic attacks based on race, it's easy to choose sides.

Modifying Another Word

  • so: For a while, he reviewed films, but his reviews were so vitriolic that local cinema managers refused to give him complimentary tickets!

Used with adjective complement

  • become: As the global Press barons such as Murdoch and Black moved in, the attacks, if anything, became even more vitriolic.
vitriolic usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

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"vitriolic." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 5 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/vitriolic>

APA Style

vitriolic. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 5th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/vitriolic

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