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mordacious

[ mawr-dey-shuhs ]
/ mɔrˈdeɪ ʃəs /
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See synonyms for: mordacious / mordacity on Thesaurus.com

adjective
biting or given to biting.
sharp or caustic in style, tone, etc.
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Origin of mordacious

1640–50; <Latin mordāci- (stem of mordāx given to biting) + -ous

OTHER WORDS FROM mordacious

mor·da·cious·ly, adverbmor·dac·i·ty [mawr-das-i-tee], /mɔrˈdæs ɪ ti/, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use mordacious in a sentence

  • Unable longer to endure the lash of his mordacious wit, Shaynon turned and left them alone on the balcony.

    The Day of Days|Louis Joseph Vance
  • Grand-duke and taxes were synonymes, according to this mordacious lexicographer!

British Dictionary definitions for mordacious

mordacious
/ (mɔːˈdeɪʃəs) /

adjective
sarcastic, caustic, or biting

Derived forms of mordacious

mordaciously, adverbmordacity (mɔːˈdæsɪtɪ) or mordaciousness, noun

Word Origin for mordacious

C17: from Latin mordax, from mordēre to bite
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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