Mordant Definition
môrdnt
mordants
adjective
Biting, cutting, caustic, or sarcastic.
Webster's New World
Incisive and trenchant.
An inquisitor's mordant questioning.
American Heritage
Causing corrosion.
Webster's New World
Acting as a mordant.
Webster's New World
Bitingly painful.
American Heritage
noun
mordants
A substance used in dyeing to fix the coloring matter, as a metallic compound that combines with the organic dye to form an insoluble colored compound, or lake, in the fiber of the fabric.
Webster's New World
An acid or other corrosive substance used in etching to bite lines, areas, etc. into the surface.
Webster's New World
verb
To treat or impregnate with a mordant.
Webster's New World
Other Word Forms of Mordant
Noun
Singular:
mordantPlural:
mordantsOrigin of Mordant
-
French from Old French present participle of mordre to bite from Vulgar Latin mordere from Latin mordēre mer- in Indo-European roots
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
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