1
as in hostility
a deep-seated ill will
he still harbored an implacable bitterness against the company that had fired him
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in bite
a harsh or sharp quality
the bitterness of the coffee suggested that it had been reheated
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in chill
an uncomfortable degree of coolness
there's a bitterness in the air, so let's build a fire in the fireplace
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in severity
biting sharpness of feeling or expression
complained with great bitterness about the ill treatment he had always received
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bitterness
But her private letters to her sister Cassandra show a sharper and more astringent person, someone whose cruelty and bitterness were redeemed only by her jokes.
—
Lucy Worsley
september 16, Literary Hub, 16 Sep. 2025
The Bitter Mai Tai is a full-fledged neo classic, first bright with lime and rum, then deep with almond, and then—where a standard Mai Tai would fall away with a lingering malic zing—the Bitter Mai Tai rises in a bold third act, humming with bitterness and the banana-funk of the rum.
—Jason O'Bryan, Robb Report, 13 Sep. 2025
The bitterness of the drink perfectly complements the sweetness of the pastry.
—Sarah Martens, Better Homes & Gardens, 11 Sep. 2025
Regarding her own father, former Hollywood lighting director Thomas Markle, there is such entrenched bitterness, and this situation makes any reconciliation far from likely.
—Stephanie Nolasco , Ashley Papa, FOXNews.com, 9 Sep. 2025
The biggest casualty, says Srivastava, will be the goodwill between India and the United States, built after decades of bitterness over Washington's support of India's adversaries like Pakistan.
—Omkar Khandekar, NPR, 8 Sep. 2025
That truth, that bitterness, ought to cut more sharply than the Super Bowl shellacking.
—Kansas City Star, 6 Sep. 2025
Staples, played in the movie by Emily Blunt, was a recovering alcoholic, and the couple’s fraught journeys with sobriety led to feelings of abandonment and bitterness.
—Rory Doherty, Time, 5 Sep. 2025
The white negroni gets its pleasant bitterness from gin infused with pine nuts.
—Rachel Bernhard, jsonline.com, 29 Aug. 2025
Lucy Worsley
september 16, Literary Hub, 16 Sep. 2025
The Bitter Mai Tai is a full-fledged neo classic, first bright with lime and rum, then deep with almond, and then—where a standard Mai Tai would fall away with a lingering malic zing—the Bitter Mai Tai rises in a bold third act, humming with bitterness and the banana-funk of the rum.
—Jason O'Bryan, Robb Report, 13 Sep. 2025
The bitterness of the drink perfectly complements the sweetness of the pastry.
—Sarah Martens, Better Homes & Gardens, 11 Sep. 2025
Regarding her own father, former Hollywood lighting director Thomas Markle, there is such entrenched bitterness, and this situation makes any reconciliation far from likely.
—Stephanie Nolasco , Ashley Papa, FOXNews.com, 9 Sep. 2025
The biggest casualty, says Srivastava, will be the goodwill between India and the United States, built after decades of bitterness over Washington's support of India's adversaries like Pakistan.
—Omkar Khandekar, NPR, 8 Sep. 2025
That truth, that bitterness, ought to cut more sharply than the Super Bowl shellacking.
—Kansas City Star, 6 Sep. 2025
Staples, played in the movie by Emily Blunt, was a recovering alcoholic, and the couple’s fraught journeys with sobriety led to feelings of abandonment and bitterness.
—Rory Doherty, Time, 5 Sep. 2025
The white negroni gets its pleasant bitterness from gin infused with pine nuts.
—Rachel Bernhard, jsonline.com, 29 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bitterness
Noun
-
The Islamic Republic of Iran is determined to preserve its independence at any cost, stand on its own feet, and firmly resist the excessive demands, aggression, and acts of hostility by foreign powers—including the United States and the Zionist regime.—
Amira El-Fekki,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Sep. 2025
-
The message refers to the conflict in Gaza and calls for an end to hostilities.—
Kathleen Walsh,
Glamour,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Watch this historic matchup on panoramic, state-of-the-art digital screens with premium seating, specialty cocktails, craft beer, and upscale bites like crispy chicken wings, flatbreads, and signature burgers.—
Nasha Smith,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
-
That took a huge bite out of Fox’s total numbers.—
Peter Baugh,
New York Times,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Farmers markets across the Louisville area will close for the season or switch times and locations as the crisp chill of fall draws near.—
Leo Bertucci,
The Courier-Journal,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Located in the exclusive Woodside community of the Bay Area, the Fleishhacker business and banking family created the ultra-private compound and its famous gardens more than 100 years ago to serve as a summer retreat to escape San Francisco’s seasonal wind, chill and fog.—
David Caraccio,
Sacbee.com,
12 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The severity of droughts, flooding, all of that will get worse.—
Hugh Cameron,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 Sep. 2025
-
The severity of a sprain depends on how much of a ligament is torn.—
Bruce Y. Lee,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Darkly funny and deeply melancholic, the film turns the family estate into a pressure cooker of grief, grudges and reluctant affection.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Sep. 2025
-
After Abe’s assassination in 2022 by a suspect who said he was motivated by a grudge against the church, an internal survey in the LDP later found that nearly half of the party’s members had links to it.—
Chad de Guzman,
Time,
8 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The attack was widely condemned in the Middle East and beyond as an act that could escalate tensions in a region already on edge.—
Jarrett Renshaw,
USA Today,
13 Sep. 2025
-
On the other hand, edge computing will gain, too.—
John Werner,
Forbes.com,
12 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
But the anger and radicalization have to be managed by Democratic leaders, if not for the sake of the country, then at least to avoid a political backlash.—
W. James Antle III,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Burning anti-establishment anger helped lay the path for his successful 2018 presidential run, with dozens of far-right and conservative lawmakers elected on his coattails.—
Ricardo Brito,
USA Today,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Foreign perpetrators have been linked to previous acts intended to incite hatred.—
Saskya Vandoorne,
CNN Money,
12 Sep. 2025
-
The left is always, at all times and places, a violent phenomenon full of hatred.—
Ross O'Keefe,
The Washington Examiner,
11 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bitterness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bitterness. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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