bitter
Americanadjective
-
bitterer,
comparative
-
bitterest
superlative
-
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
-
bitters
plural
-
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
Derived Forms
-
bitternessnoun
-
bitterishadjective
-
nonbitteradjective
-
overbitteradjective
-
unbitteradjective
-
bitterlyadverb
-
overbitterlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Adjectives
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
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ACT Reading Test: Words to Capture Tone, List 1
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The New SAT: Words to Capture Tone
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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.
See Examples For:
And while it’s good to replace that metaphorical candy with something healthier, we cannot flog ourselves into not needing something sweet to survive the bitter world we live in.
From Slate ● Nov. 1, 2026
Voters in Los Angeles will settle a surprisingly competitive mayoral race in Tuesday's midterm vote, a bitter showdown between two progressive women of color who were once allies.
From Barron's ● Nov. 1, 2026
That did not make Newhan and McCourt the best of friends, but neither did it make them bitter enemies.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2026
That's a bitter pill to swallow for Dr Noor Mohammed, a harried young doctor.
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026
The initial shock of the ice water had worn off, and now every part of Owen was on fire with the kind of burn you only felt from a bitter, bone-deep cold.
From "Two Degrees" by Alan Gratz
The group said it is also looking to cultural partnerships and activation in the on-premise scene, a strategy that has been central to above-industry growth at smaller peer Campari, maker of bitters Aperol.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
The group behind Aperol and Campari bitters recorded 2.5% organic sales growth in the quarter through June, with its core aperitifs business booking 4% growth.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
They also offer rosé and a crisp Sauvignon Blanc by the glass, but the frozen concoction with bitters was the perfect antidote for Coachella’s striking afternoon sun.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 16, 2024
If you want to make a nonalcoholic drink, simply add soda water, tonic and, if you like, a few dashes of Angostura bitters.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 10, 2023
Shuttled from one specialist to the next, the girl had been prescribed to shun garlic, consume disproportionate quantities of bitters, meditate, drink green coconut water, and swallow raw duck’s eggs beaten in milk.
From "Interpreter of Maladies" by Jhumpa Lahiri
His face is bitterer than the cold as Miranda asks him how his apartment hunt is going.
From Salon ● Jul. 23, 2023
That’s a bitter joke, but no bitterer than the tone of the English master’s sweeping historical drama about the slaughter of a group of peaceful labor organizers at a mass protest in 1819.
From Slate ● Dec. 6, 2019
“Information warfare will grow far bitterer, and that’s something we will have to live with during the upcoming period.”
From Washington Times ● Mar. 5, 2018
It’s hard to say which of them produced the bitterer barbs.
From Time ● Sep. 24, 2015
But there is one injustice bitterer even than that—to be denied the right to work according to one’s ability.
From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers
Some of the regime’s bitterest enemies in Miami became its de facto financial supporters as they sent their grandparents money without which they couldn’t survive.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 8, 2026
The movie’s bitterest irony is that, of the two men, it’s ultimately Dee who may be more honorable.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 24, 2026
In 2022 the two men ran one of the bitterest Senate races in recent memory.
From Slate ● Nov. 22, 2024
It had been the NHS’s longest-running and bitterest pay dispute - responsible for hundreds of thousands of cancelled operations and appointments.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2024
My father had been killed in the mine accident three months earlier in the bitterest January anyone could remember.
From "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
