mordancy

noun

ˈmȯr-dᵊn(t)-sē How to pronounce mordancy (audio)
Definition of mordancynext
as in bitterness
biting sharpness of feeling or expression the surprising mordancy with which the two physicians contested each other's claim to having discovered an effective vaccine for polio

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of mordancy The gray-tint, cross-hatched drawings evoke George Cruikshank and Samuel Palmer, but the mordancy is vintage Sendak. — The Week Staff, The Week, 17 Oct. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mordancy
  1. bitterness
  2. severity
  3. hostility
  4. virulency
  5. virulence
  6. bile
  7. malice
  8. anger
Noun
  • But few, if any, can match the tradition, scale, and bitterness of the yearly clash between Alabama and Tennessee on the third Saturday in October.
    — Austin Evans, Southern Living, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Written with a reporter’s sharp eye for detail and a remarkable lack of anger or bitterness, this is a compelling story of courage and grace.
    — Monitor reviewers, Christian Science Monitor, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of bitterness
Noun
  • But genuinely funny moments are rare, badly outnumbered by done-to-death musings regarding the mysteries of being alive and torturous melodramatic moments in which Klara dully absorbs the severity of Josie’s illness and Chrissy’s sorrow.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Gassman emphasized that the severity of coastal flooding will depend largely on weather conditions.
    — Ted Scouten, CBS News, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of severity
Noun
  • That does not mean that everyone who supports a ban is motivated by hostility toward women.
    — Jesse Rhodes, The Conversation, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Weil offers an extreme version of this hostility to the self.
    — James Wood, New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of hostility
Noun
  • The virulency of Covid-19 trained even those of us who shop locally out of principal to purchase online.
    — Marc Peruzzi, Outside Online, 2 Mar. 2021
Definition of virulency
Noun
  • Firefighters and authorities in both European countries were caught off guard by the virulence of the fires, which were fueled by high temperatures and the long-term effects of climate change.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 25 July 2026
  • The virulence of the French and Spanish wildfires, fueled by high temperatures and the long-term effects of climate change, caught fire crews and authorities off guard.
    — Mark Carlson, Fortune, 25 July 2026
Definition of virulence
Noun
  • Stomach Bile In one sequence of the film, Jay finds himself in the whale’s stomach bile.
    — Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Her words are not of gratitude but resentment, bile and narcissism.
    — Deputy Managing Editor, Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of bile
Noun
  • The Court finds Defendant could not have responded to these instances of 'actual malice' in the First Amended Complaint, as they were not framed as such.
    — Tracy Wright, FOXNews.com, 21 Oct. 2026
  • In October, a Newton County grand jury indicted 43-year-old Taiesha Wilson on charges of malice murder, murder, concealing the death of another, identity theft, and more.
    — Dan Raby, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of malice
Noun
  • Recently, anger at this collateral damage, heightened by the fish shortage, has evolved into a political movement.
    — Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Medicaid reimbursement rate cuts anger foster care advocates and lawmakers.
    — Adam Beam, AJC.com, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of anger

Browse Nearby Words

morbidness
mordancy
mordant
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Cite this Entry

“Mordancy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mordancy. Accessed 25 Oct. 2026.

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