1
as in angry
having or showing deep-seated resentment
a bitter attitude about always having to work on Saturday she's still bitter about how her family treated her so unfairly
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in painful
hard to accept or bear especially emotionally
discovering that he had been cut from the crew team was a bitter disappointment
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3
as in biting
causing intense discomfort to one's skin
a bitter wind was stinging the faces of the skiers
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4
as in harsh
difficult to endure
a bitter lesson about money and friendship
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5
as in cold
having a low or subnormal temperature
a bitter February day for this part of the country
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6
as in chilly
uncomfortably cool
a bitter, rainy day
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7
as in mournful
expressing or suggesting mourning
a bitter cry of grief
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8
as in unpleasant
not giving pleasure to the mind or senses
had to face the bitter truth about their marriage
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bitter
His adult kids weren't speaking to him after, in his view, siding with their mother following a bitter divorce.
—
Danielle Paquette The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 12 Apr. 2026
Miho Sakoda’s Butterfly (Cio-Cio-San) managed a deft balance of girlish naiveté, true love and bitter betrayal with a soprano of apparently limitless expressivity.
—Scott Cantrell, Dallas Morning News, 11 Apr. 2026
The town has been operating without a local government since January, when its entire Board of Trustees quit following years of bitter infighting and a violent scuffle that sent one of the trustees to the hospital, The Denver Post reported last month.
—Sam Tabachnik, Denver Post, 10 Apr. 2026
The current reality also underlines the idea that external intervention and privileging war over diplomacy has made conflict resolution ever more difficult in a region with a long history of imperial expansion, great power competition and bitter political divides.
—Ioana Emy Matesan, The Conversation, 9 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for bitter
Danielle Paquette The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 12 Apr. 2026
Miho Sakoda’s Butterfly (Cio-Cio-San) managed a deft balance of girlish naiveté, true love and bitter betrayal with a soprano of apparently limitless expressivity.
—Scott Cantrell, Dallas Morning News, 11 Apr. 2026
The town has been operating without a local government since January, when its entire Board of Trustees quit following years of bitter infighting and a violent scuffle that sent one of the trustees to the hospital, The Denver Post reported last month.
—Sam Tabachnik, Denver Post, 10 Apr. 2026
The current reality also underlines the idea that external intervention and privileging war over diplomacy has made conflict resolution ever more difficult in a region with a long history of imperial expansion, great power competition and bitter political divides.
—Ioana Emy Matesan, The Conversation, 9 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for bitter
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bitter
Adjective
-
But, Trump is not popular overall with most California voters, who are angry with him for sending federal troops and immigration officers to the state, and not sending enough federal funding to help wildfire victims in Los Angeles, said McCuan, the Sonoma State professor.—
Terry Collins,
USA Today,
10 Apr. 2026
-
No angry, in-your-face, Twitter-like battles were instigated.—
Aaron Everitt,
STAT,
10 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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In parched southern Texas, a yearslong drought has depleted Corpus Christi's water reserves so gravely that the city is scrambling to prevent a shortage that could force painful cutbacks for residents and hobble the refineries and petrochemical plants in a major energy port.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
12 Apr. 2026
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In parched southern Texas, a yearslong drought has depleted Corpus Christi’s water reserves so gravely that the city is scrambling to prevent a shortage that could force painful cutbacks for residents and hobble the refineries and petrochemical plants in a major energy port.—
Michael Phillis,
Fortune,
12 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Much like the days getting longer and the air less biting, a sure harbinger that spring is coming is the 33rd annual West Suburban Irish St. Patrick’s Day Parade in downtown Naperville.—
Annie Alleman,
Chicago Tribune,
9 Mar. 2026
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As the nation bonded as one over the past two weeks biting nails, screaming at wins, wincing at crashes and choking up at all the beautiful moments of Olympic competition, another group of athletes were – and still are – out honing their multi-level championship skills.—
Moira McCarthy,
Boston Herald,
25 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The lawyers also argue that Combs' sentence was too harsh, saying the trial judge wrongly based it in part on a conclusion that the crimes involved fraud and coercion and that Combs was a leader or organizer of criminal activity.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
9 Apr. 2026
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Focused on a 2021 expedition in which Icelandic climber John Snorri Sigurjónsson and the Pakistani father-and-son team Ali and Sajid Sadpara attempt to become the first to summit K2 in winter, when conditions are at their harshest.—
Christian Zilko,
IndieWire,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Tuesday’s game was moved from the evening to the afternoon in anticipation of cold temperatures.—
LaMond Pope,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Chu attributed the slower activity in early 2026 to high interest rates and an unusually cold winter, which kept many prospective buyers away from open houses in January and February.—
Chase Jordan
April 7,
Charlotte Observer,
7 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Plan on a chilly morning and pleasant afternoon on Sunday.—
Cutter Martin,
CBS News,
10 Apr. 2026
-
With the arrival of Te Arai Links, the era of sleeping bags and chilly bins has given way to an intentional kind of luxury—one that suggests this wild coastline was always ready for world-class attention.—
Amy Louise Bailey,
Travel + Leisure,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Then, in the Andante movement, the upper strings opened with a glassy sound before the mournful line of the cello entered.—
Sheila Regan,
Twin Cities,
28 Mar. 2026
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Over the years, humpback whale songs have been recorded for human listening, with many describing the songs as having a haunting, mournful quality.—
Patrick Whittle,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
To avoid unpleasant digestive side effects, start by adding 1 tablespoon (or less) to your recipes.—
Kirsten Nunez,
Martha Stewart,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Dahl’s books are fanciful and imaginative, but also dark, cynical, and mean (and, unfortunately, often reflected his real-life ugliness), spinning stories in which gruesome and unpleasant fates befell rotten kids, and adults were frequently selfish, cruel, and not to be trusted.—
Wilson Chapman,
IndieWire,
10 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bitter.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bitter. Accessed 14 Apr. 2026.
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