bittersweet

[bit-er-sweet, bit-er-sweet, bit-er-sweet]

adjective

1. both bitter and sweet to the taste.

   bittersweet chocolate.

2. both pleasant and painful or regretful.

   a bittersweet memory.

noun

1. Also called woody nightshade. a climbing or trailing plant, Solanum dulcamara, of the nightshade family, having small, violet, star-shaped flowers with a protruding yellow center and scarlet berries.

2. Also called climbing bittersweet. any climbing plant of the genus Celastrus, bearing orange capsules opening to expose red-coated seeds, especially C. scandens.

3. pleasure mingled with pain or regret.

   the bittersweet of parting.

bittersweet

/ ˈbɪtəˌswiːt /

noun

1. any of several North American woody climbing plants of the genus Celastrus , esp C. scandens , having orange capsules that open to expose scarlet-coated seeds: family Celastraceae

2. another name for woody nightshade

adjective

1. tasting of or being a mixture of bitterness and sweetness

2. pleasant but tinged with sadness

Other Word Forms

• bittersweetly adverb
• bittersweetness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of bittersweet¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English; bitter + sweet

Example Sentences

So it was bittersweet to this fiercely ambitious author that writing fame arrived with “The Snow Leopard,” his 1978 chronicle of a two-month trek to the Tibetan Plateau of the Himalayas.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Russia was known for its stormy classical music, its tormented poets, its mournful novelists and bittersweet playwrights.

Read more on Literature

But my good news was tempered by a bittersweet reality.

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The result is a tender, bittersweet ballad to anyone who feels they may not be fully over yet, especially when indications say otherwise.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

“It’s been a really difficult decision, the best way to describe it would be bittersweet,” Force said in an interview with The Times this week.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• agonizing 
• arduous 
• awful 
• difficult 
• dire 
• distasteful 
• distressing www.thesaurus.com
• excruciating 
• hard 
• harrowing 
• heart-wrenching 
• hurtful 
• severe 
• tedious 
• terrible 
• troublesome 
• uncomfortable 
• unpleasant 

When To Use

What does bittersweet mean?

Bittersweet describes something that tastes both harsh or acrid and sugary, such as a chocolate with less sugar, intended for baking into something sweet, like a cake.Bittersweet also describes something that is both pleasant and regretful, such as graduating from high school. You’re excited about what comes after high school, but you’ll miss seeing your friends everyday. Graduation is a bittersweet moment.Bittersweet is another name for Solanum dulcamara, or woody nightshade, a creeping, vine-like plant that can be poisonous in large quantities.Bittersweet could also refer to any climbing plant of the genus Celastrus.Example: I take just a little sugar in my coffee because I like a bittersweet taste.