acrimony

noun

ac·ri·mo·ny ˈa-krə-ˌmō-nē

plural acrimonies

Synonyms of acrimony next

: anger and bitterness : harsh or biting sharpness especially of words, manner, or feelings

The dispute continued with increased acrimony.

Examples of acrimony in a Sentence

The dispute began again with increased acrimony. she responded with such acrimony that he never brought the subject up again

Recent Examples on the Web Could the conflict be discussed without triggering more acrimony, as the subject had on so many other campuses? —

Courtland Milloy, Washington Post, 21 Nov. 2023 There’s rarely been a sense of acrimony between Patton and Benjamin, just deviating ambitions. —

Hua Hsu, The New Yorker, 21 Nov. 2023 Google said the acrimony described to The Times by both Muslim and Jewish employees was limited to a small group of its many thousands of workers. —

Mike Isaac, New York Times, 8 Nov. 2023 After months of acrimony, the U.S. and China this week will attempt to find a way to reopen talks on divisive issues. —

Laura Blasey, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2023 Some of the acrimony and frustration is related to money. —

Tariq Panja, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2023 In a marathon meeting at City Hall that stretched across about seven hours and was spiked with bitterness and acrimony between councilors, four separate override votes to the mayor’s budget failed to garner the necessary two-thirds support of the 12-member council. —

Danny McDonald, BostonGlobe.com, 28 June 2023 Numerous potential successors to Iger have left, and the February 2020 appointment of Bob Chapek as CEO ended after two and a half years with his ouster amid acrimony among divisional executives. —

Thomas Buckley, Fortune, 6 Nov. 2023 Library and county officials plan to meet next week for their first full, face-to-face negotiations after months of acrimony. —

Gregory S. Schneider, Washington Post, 15 Sep. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'acrimony.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French acrimonie, borrowed from Latin ācrimōnia, from ācr-, ācer "sharp, biting, keen" + -mōnia, suffix of abstract nouns (going back to the Indo-European noun-forming suffix *-mĕ̄n-/*-mŏ̄n- + the abstract noun formative *-i-) — more at acr-

First Known Use

1542, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of acrimony was in 1542

See more words from the same year