atrabilious

or at·ra·bil·iar

[a-truh-bil-yuh s]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR atrabilious ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

gloomy; morose; melancholy; morbid.

irritable; bad-tempered; splenetic.

Nearby words

Origin of atrabilious

1645–55; < Latin ātra bīli(s) black bile + -ous

Related formsat·ra·bil·ious·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for atrabilious

An atrabilious monk in his garret vented his spleen with more than usual acrimony, and the world applauded.
Renaissance in Italy: Italian Literature|John Addington Symonds
He now sees what a regard they have for the health of the atrabilious South Americans.
Memoirs of Service Afloat, During the War Between the States|Raphael Semmes
The country has its eye on that knot of atrabilious Liberals whose voice is that of Jacob, but whose hands are the hands of Esau.
British Quarterly Review, American Edition, Volume LIV|Various
After his conversion he made amends, though he was always the atrabilious faultfinder.
Unicorns|James Huneker

Ariosto is playful, Aretino scurrilous, Alamanni peevish, Folengo atrabilious.
Renaissance in Italy: Italian Literature|John Addington Symonds

British Dictionary definitions for atrabilious

atrabilious

atrabiliar

adjective

rare irritable

Derived Formsatrabiliousness, noun

Word Origin for atrabilious

C17: from Latin ātra bīlis black bile, from āter black + bīlis bile 1

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for atrabilious

atrabilious

adj.

1650s, from Latin atra bilis, translating Greek melankholia "black bile" (see melancholy; also cf. bile). Atra is fem. of ater "black, dark, gloomy," perhaps related to root of atrocity. Related: Atrabiliousness.