Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Bitter, sharp animosity, especially as exhibited in speech or behavior.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun Acridity; harshness or extreme bitterness of taste; pungency; corrosiveness.
  • noun Figuratively, sharpness or severity of temper; bitterness of expression proceeding from anger, ill nature, or petulance; virulence.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun Archaic A quality of bodies which corrodes or destroys others; also, a harsh or biting sharpness.
  • noun Sharpness or severity, as of language or temper; irritating bitterness of disposition or manners.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A sharp and bitter hatred.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a rough and bitter manner

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Latin ācrimōnia, sharpness, from ācer, sharp; see ak- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle French acrimonie, from Latin ācrimōnia ("sharpness, pungency").

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word acrimony.

Examples

  • Today's heightened political acrimony is but a foretaste of the "grim Malthusian" politics ahead, with politicians increasingly trying to redistribute the fruits of a stagnant economy, loosing even more forces of stagnation.

    Technology = Salvation Holman W. Jenkins Jr. 2010

  • A rise in paralysis and acrimony is not going to comfort a bond market waiting to see whether we can make difficult decisions on spending cuts and tax hikes.

    Can business afford the Republican Party? Ezra Klein 2010

  • Their first ended several years ago, undone in acrimony after DirecTV — then owned by the News Corporation — moved to use recording devices owned by a company that was also owned by News Corp.

    DirecTV Strikes Deal to Offer TiVo Recorder - Bits Blog - NYTimes.com 2008

  • Their first ended several years ago, undone in acrimony after DirecTV — then owned by the News Corporation — moved to use recording devices owned by a company that was also owned by News Corp.

    DirecTV Strikes Deal to Offer TiVo Recorder - Bits Blog - NYTimes.com 2008

  • Today's chaotic pattern of funding, administration, interference, cross purposes and acrimony is not serving the public well.

    Why Pay Twice? The Cost of Double Government 1982

  • And it was Charlie’s indirect responsibility that he committed suicide, thus ending that marriage in acrimony and despair.

    Patrick McGrath’s ‘Trauma’ « Tales from the Reading Room 2009

  • The acrimony is the latest example of shattered alliances in the New York real-estate world.

    British Bank Is Sued Over Sale of 2 Buildings 2010

  • I recall the acrimony poured out towards Jews on this nasty little "current affairs" show after the Hezbollah and Hamas wars and how an audience purposely packed with a crowd of rentaMuslims who have not appeared in such numbers since, how strange made the then US Ambassador cry after a particularly vicious and orchestrated post 9-11 backlash set up by the extremists at the BBC troughers Gentlemans Club on same "current affairs" show.

    OPEN THREAD 2009

  • Right - eight years of foaming-at-the-mouth BusHitler hatred, but now when they're in control suddenly they think ending the acrimony is a good idea.

    "Na Na Na Na/Na Na Na Na/Hey Hey Hey/Good-bye." Ann Althouse 2009

  • I don't mean to suggest that they don't think that, but as I pointed out last week, the idea that the acrimony is a result of particular people - still less that it will stop if we elect Obama.

    "The last thing we need is a President who encourages festering racial controversies." Ann Althouse 2008

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • Law & Order - Season 14, Episode 7 - "Floater"

    February 14, 2007

  • sharp, bitter hatred

    June 9, 2011

  • 1906 US Railway Assn. Standard Cipher Code, shorthand for telegraph communications and meaning "action deferred until further notice".

    January 19, 2013

  • bitterness and ill will

    The acrimony between the president and vice-president sent a clear signal to voters: the health of the current administration was imperiled.

    October 1, 2016