bitter apple
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of bitter apple
First recorded in 1860–65
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.
“You can also use something like bitter apple spray on the entire length of the lights, and that will deter any chewing.”
From Slate ● Dec. 7, 2019
Look here, Peter," said Felix ominously, "they tell me that you've been praying right along that I couldn't eat a bitter apple.
From The Story Girl by L. M. (Lucy Maud) Montgomery
And when he had prayed three nights after this manner, he contrived to eat a bitter apple without a grimace until he came to the last bite, which proved too much for him.
From The Story Girl by L. M. (Lucy Maud) Montgomery
Collinquintida Ð a bitter apple of the gourd family whose soft fruit made a purgative drug 59.
From The Noble Spanish Soldier by Thomas Dekker
One of the principal ingredients in the mummy balsam is colocynth, or bitter apple, powdered.
From The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction Volume 14, No. 398, November 14, 1829 by Various
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.
