bitterness

American  

[bit-er-nis] / ˈbɪt ər nɪs /

noun

1. a harsh, acrid taste that is one of the four basic taste sensations; a taste that is not sour, sweet, or salty.

   The beer’s initial flavor profile is a faint bitterness, with a lingering, slightly cloying sweetness.

2. a feeling of pain or distress.

   The bitter herbs at a Passover Seder are meant to remind us of the bitterness of slavery.

3. a feeling of antagonism, hostility, or resentfulness.

   There was no shortage of people expressing frustration and bitterness about the slow pace of the relief efforts.

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Other Word Forms

• overbitterness noun

Etymology

Origin of bitterness

bitter ( def. ) + -ness ( def. )

Example Sentences

He displays a remarkable lack of bitterness and enormous dignity, given his ordeal by newspaper.

From The Wall Street Journal

Russell said he was wary ahead of the meeting but his brother had said he bore no malice or bitterness about the adoption.

From BBC

Rather than succumbing to bitterness, he used that emotional insight to fuel his advocacy for families and young children.

From Los Angeles Times

He proves his stature as a first-rate actor by rendering these repetitious eruptions of bitterness insignificant.

From The Wall Street Journal

Goldblatt’s pictures from before these events are touristic and from afterward elegiac; particularly moving are his portraits of the dispossessed, showing their bitterness and their dignity.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• anguish
• hostility
• pain
• sarcasm