sour

[ souuhr, sou-er ]

/ saʊər, ˈsaʊ ər /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR sour ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective, sour·er, sour·est.

having an acid taste, resembling that of vinegar, lemon juice, etc.; tart.

rendered acid or affected by fermentation; fermented.

producing the one of the four basic taste sensations that is not bitter, salt, or sweet.

characteristic of something fermented: a sour smell.

distasteful or disagreeable; unpleasant.

below standard; poor.

harsh in spirit or temper; austere; morose; peevish.

Agriculture. (of soil) having excessive acidity.

(of gasoline or the like) contaminated by sulfur compounds.

Music. off-pitch; badly produced: a sour note.

noun

something that is sour.

any of various cocktails consisting typically of whiskey or gin with lemon or lime juice and sugar and sometimes soda water, often garnished with a slice of orange, a maraschino cherry, or both.

an acid or an acidic substance used in laundering and bleaching to neutralize alkalis and to decompose residual soap or bleach.

verb (used without object)

to become sour, rancid, mildewed, etc.; spoil: Milk sours quickly in warm weather. The laundry soured before it was ironed.

to become unpleasant or strained; worsen; deteriorate: Relations between the two countries have soured.

to become bitter, disillusioned, or disinterested: I guess I soured when I learned he was married. My loyalty soured after his last book.

Agriculture. (of soil) to develop excessive acidity.

verb (used with object)

to make sour; cause sourness in: What do they use to sour the mash?

to cause spoilage in; rot: Defective cartons soured the apples.

to make bitter, disillusioned, or disagreeable: One misadventure needn't have soured him. That swindle soured a great many potential investors.

Nearby words

souple, soupmeat, soupspoon, soupy, soupçon, sour, sour cherry, sour cream, sour dock, sour gourd, sour grapes

Origin of sour

before 1000; (adj. and noun) Middle English sure, soure, Old English sūr (orig. adj.); cognate with German sauer, Dutch zuur, Old Norse sūrr; (v.) Middle English souren, derivative of the adj.

SYNONYMS FOR sour

5 bitter.

7 severe, testy, touchy, acrimonious, cross, petulant, crabbed.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR sour ON THESAURUS.COM

ANTONYMS FOR sour

1 sweet.

SEE MORE ANTONYMS FOR sour ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

sour·ish, adjectivesour·ly, adverbsour·ness, nouno·ver·sour, adjective

o·ver·sour·ly, adverbo·ver·sour·ness, nounun·sour, adjectiveun·sour·ly, adverbun·sour·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for souring

Frustrated by her souring relationship with Salinger, Maynard fixated on the idea of having a daughter.
15 Revelations from New J.D. Salinger Biography|Andrew Romano|September 2, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Political independents are also souring on Obama, with just 37 percent approving of his job performance, a 10-point drop.
In Wake of Surveillance Stories, Barack Obama’s Poll Numbers Plummet|John Avlon|June 17, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Of the high hopes that characterize the Western Aliyah (immigration) souring so dramatically, so brutally.
What Prisoner X Scandal?|Gil Troy|February 20, 2013|DAILY BEAST
And then—five days later, with the polls showing Americans souring on the Lebanon policy—Reagan decided to pull the troops out.
How Romney Is Like Reagan|Peter Beinart|June 20, 2011|DAILY BEAST

Where you once cold-shouldered friends without warning, you now realize you did so out of fear that they were souring on you.
Zodiac Beast|Starsky + Cox|April 9, 2011|DAILY BEAST
The struggle with his uncle seemed to be souring him or deadening him.
Beauchamp's Career, Complete|George Meredith
The appliances for the souring of milk on the domestic scale require some consideration.
The Bacillus of Long Life|Loudon Douglas
Every possible offence was punished under the name of witchcraft, from souring beer to high treason.
The Works of Robert G. Ingersoll, Vol. 7 (of 12)|Robert G. Ingersoll
The same type of machine is used for liming, chemicking, and souring.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Slice 1|Various
There is in this way no danger of the thick fleshy leaf base decaying under the wrap and souring and killing the buds.
Northern Nut Growers Association, Report of the Proceedings at the Fourth Annual Meeting|Various

British Dictionary definitions for souring (1 of 2)

Sour

/ (sʊə) /

noun

a variant spelling of Sur

British Dictionary definitions for souring (2 of 2)

sour

/ (ˈsaʊə) /

adjective

having or denoting a sharp biting taste like that of lemon juice or vinegarCompare bitter (def. 1)

made acid or bad, as in the case of milk or alcohol, by the action of microorganisms

having a rancid or unwholesome smell

(of a person's temperament) sullen, morose, or disagreeable

(esp of the weather or climate) harsh and unpleasant

disagreeable; distastefula sour experience

(of land, etc) lacking in fertility, esp due to excessive acidity

(of oil, gas, or petrol) containing a relatively large amount of sulphur compounds

go sour or turn sour to become unfavourable or inharmonioushis marriage went sour

noun

something sour

mainly US any of several iced drinks usually made with spirits, lemon juice, and icea whiskey sour

an acid used in laundering and bleaching clothes or in curing animal skins

verb

to make or become sour

Derived Forms

sourish, adjectivesourly, adverbsourness, noun

Word Origin for sour

Old English sūr; related to Old Norse sūrr, Lithuanian suras salty, Old Slavonic syrŭ wet, raw, surovu green, raw, Sanskrit surā brandy

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