as in sorrowfully
with feelings of bitterness or grief
cried bitterly after her grandmother died
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Recent Examples of bitterly
The ultra-chic crewneck sweater has a slightly oversized fit that’s perfect for cozying up on a long-haul flight and or layering with a turtleneck on bitterly cold winter days.
—
Melony Forcier, Travel + Leisure, 17 Feb. 2026
Not bitterly, not hysterically—openly, with the sound of someone arriving at a recognition both painful and clarifying.
—Jp Mangalindan, Time, 17 Feb. 2026
Milano would later admit pulling the trigger and weep bitterly for having done so.
—Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 12 Feb. 2026
January's bitterly cold weather was a perfect opportunity for readers.
—Cailey Gleeson, jsonline.com, 10 Feb. 2026
In the capital, Kyiv, temperatures well below zero and bitterly cold winds are expected for the next four days at least.
—Tim Lister, CNN Money, 8 Feb. 2026
Friday and Saturday are First Alert Weather Days for a one-two punch of snow showers Friday afternoon and evening, and bitterly cold temperatures along with disruptive winds Saturday.
—Steven Sosna, CBS News, 5 Feb. 2026
The union had bitterly opposed Newsom in his race.
—Maya Singer, Vogue, 1 Feb. 2026
And while some temporary relief is likely, the polar vortex could unleash another surge of bitterly cold air across the central and eastern United States around the middle of February, according to AccuWeather long-range expert Paul Pastelok.
—Doyle Rice, USA Today, 31 Jan. 2026
Melony Forcier, Travel + Leisure, 17 Feb. 2026
Not bitterly, not hysterically—openly, with the sound of someone arriving at a recognition both painful and clarifying.
—Jp Mangalindan, Time, 17 Feb. 2026
Milano would later admit pulling the trigger and weep bitterly for having done so.
—Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 12 Feb. 2026
January's bitterly cold weather was a perfect opportunity for readers.
—Cailey Gleeson, jsonline.com, 10 Feb. 2026
In the capital, Kyiv, temperatures well below zero and bitterly cold winds are expected for the next four days at least.
—Tim Lister, CNN Money, 8 Feb. 2026
Friday and Saturday are First Alert Weather Days for a one-two punch of snow showers Friday afternoon and evening, and bitterly cold temperatures along with disruptive winds Saturday.
—Steven Sosna, CBS News, 5 Feb. 2026
The union had bitterly opposed Newsom in his race.
—Maya Singer, Vogue, 1 Feb. 2026
And while some temporary relief is likely, the polar vortex could unleash another surge of bitterly cold air across the central and eastern United States around the middle of February, according to AccuWeather long-range expert Paul Pastelok.
—Doyle Rice, USA Today, 31 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bitterly
Adverb
-
Tarun would tease her, and my mother would look sorrowfully toward Kavitha, as if the two of them now shared some womanly burden.—
Madhuri Vijay,
New Yorker,
16 Nov. 2025
Adverb
-
The Super Bowl, sadly, was a snoozer.—
Brendan Marks,
New York Times,
12 Feb. 2026
-
One man sadly watched the commemoration from a sidewalk in Tehran, not taking part.—
Jon Gambrell,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Feb. 2026
Adverb
-
For their part, Democratic leaders spoke mournfully of limits, of energy shortages, of national decline, of a crisis of confidence itself.—
Rosa Lyster,
Harpers Magazine,
30 Dec. 2025
-
Based on the Dylan Thomas prose poem of the same name, published in 1952, the film lovingly and mournfully depicts the boyhood Christmastime of an old Welshman, tenderly and a tad mischievously embodied by Elliott.—
Sheldon Pearce,
New Yorker,
21 Nov. 2025
Adverb
-
But Wemby got his painfully cool peers to play along, to pick up the tempo – and their defense, often at half court.—
Mirjam Swanson,
Oc Register,
16 Feb. 2026
-
My path has crossed languages and cultures, continents and genres, sometimes gracefully, sometimes a little painfully, but always guided by curiosity and deep faith in cinema.—
Lily Ford,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Feb. 2026
Adverb
-
Elsewhere, stories of economic gloom – from galloping inflation to restaurant closures and the knock-on impact of severe tax increases – describe the many ways in which the prolonged war in Ukraine is now hitting Russians hard in the pocket at home.—
Matthew Chance,
CNN Money,
21 Feb. 2026
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The Marshall Tucker Band rocked The Guild in Menlo Park hard for 90 minutes on Friday night, turning in a 14-song performance that was an absolute testament to both the lasting greatness of this South Carolina troupe and the power of Southern rock.—
Jim Harrington,
Mercury News,
21 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bitterly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bitterly. Accessed 22 Feb. 2026.
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