bitter
Americanadjective
-
having a harsh, disagreeably acrid taste, like that of aspirin, quinine, wormwood, or aloes.
- Synonyms:
- distasteful, unpalatable, acrid
-
producing one of the four basic taste sensations; not sour, sweet, or salt.
-
hard to bear; grievous; distressful.
a bitter sorrow.
-
causing pain; piercing; stinging.
a bitter chill.
-
characterized by intense antagonism or hostility.
bitter hatred.
- Synonyms:
- relentless, ruthless, cruel, fierce
-
hard to admit or accept.
a bitter lesson.
-
resentful or cynical.
bitter words.
- Synonyms:
- scornful, sardonic, biting, caustic, acrimonious
noun
-
that which is bitter; bitterness.
Learn to take the bitter with the sweet.
-
British. a very dry ale having a strong taste of hops.
verb (used with object)
adverb
adjective
-
having or denoting an unpalatable harsh taste, as the peel of an orange or coffee dregs Compare sour
-
showing or caused by strong unrelenting hostility or resentment
he was still bitter about the divorce
-
difficult or unpleasant to accept or admit
a bitter blow
-
cutting; sarcastic
bitter words
-
bitingly cold
a bitter night
adverb
noun
-
a thing that is bitter
-
beer with a high hop content, with a slightly bitter taste
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of bitter
First recorded before 1000; Middle English, Old English biter; cognate with German bitter, Old Norse bitr, Gothic baitrs; akin to bite
Explanation
If you usually drink your coffee with lots of cream and sugar in it, you might be surprised at how bitter plain black coffee can taste. Bitter means "having a sharp or harsh flavor." Bitter describes a particular pungent taste, like the sharpness of very dark chocolate (which is sometimes called bittersweet for its mixture of the two flavors). If you imagine taking that bitter taste on your tongue and turning it into an emotion, you've got another meaning of bitter: a resentful, angry feeling. And if you turn that bitter flavor into a physical feeling, you've got an adjective that describes a sharp, unpleasant sensation, like a cold, bitter wind.
Vocabulary lists containing bitter
The SAT: Words to Capture Tone, List 3
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
ACT Reading Test: Words to Capture Tone, List 1
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
The New SAT: Words to Capture Tone
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The filing comes just days after Musk suffered a significant legal setback in his bitter feud with OpenAI, a direct competitor also racing toward a public listing.
From Barron's • May 20, 2026
He is giving you this money out of his own pocket because you are his sister and he understands that you have had to swallow a bitter pill.
From MarketWatch • May 20, 2026
Yet we have an economy seemingly trapped in low growth, high debt and stagnating real incomes with voters feeling the bitter reality of a cost-of-living crisis.
From BBC • May 16, 2026
Today, the men are on opposite sides of a bitter showdown over the company they co-founded.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 16, 2026
Even a heavy dose of Tamika’s hot sauce wouldn’t be able to bury the bitter aftertaste.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
