1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

sour 1 of 2

verb

Definition of sournext
as in to anger
to cause to change from friendly or loving to unfriendly or uncaring a misunderstanding that soured their relationship for a long time

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

sour

2 of 2

adjective

ˈsau̇(-ə)r How to pronounce sour (audio)
1
as in acidic
causing or characterized by the one of the four basic taste sensations that is produced chiefly by acids the sour candy made our mouths all wrinkly inside

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in unpleasant
not giving pleasure to the mind or senses you'll have to face up to the sour truth of the matter

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in unacceptable
falling short of a standard things started off well, but now it's all gone sour

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 sour
Verb
Then Bruce Thomas, who authored a roman à clef about touring life, The Big Wheel, which soured his relationship with Costello, was replaced by bassist Davey Faragher in the band that still plays today as Elvis Costello & the Imposters. — Al Shipley, SPIN, 8 Sep. 2026 In August, Dick’s Sporting Goods cut its earnings forecast at subsidiary retailer Foot Locker for the rest of this year, saying lifestyle shoes simply aren’t resonating with consumers and will continue to sour through the holiday season. — Sara Germano, Sportico.com, 8 Sep. 2026
Adjective
On the international scene these days, our trumpets have sounded slightly sour and uncertain. — Robert Stone, Rolling Stone, 11 Sep. 2026 Then the celebration hits a sour note when Liz assures Alice that the team doesn’t hate her. — Keith Phipps, Vulture, 9 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for sour
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sour
  1. anger
  2. acidic
  3. unpleasant
  4. unacceptable
  5. infuriate
  6. acid
  7. bitter
  8. wrong
Verb
  • But Trump’s solution, to import 300,000 metric tons of beef and sell it at a reduced cost, angered American ranchers.
    — Sarah Henry, AZCentral.com, 11 Sep. 2026
  • Rebecca regrets angering Matthijs (Matteo van der Grijn) after putting his daughter in the middle of a heated discussion around the possibility of Matthijs moving to London.
    — Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of anger
Adjective
  • Editor Cam McLauchlin never cuts them into mere blitzes of limbs and blood, though DP Katelin Arizmendi’s acidic palette of yellows, greens and corporeal streaks of red does lend the realism a kind of pop-art splendor.
    — Guy Lodge, Variety, 14 Sep. 2026
  • Black gum will adapt to most soil conditions, but must be planted in acidic soil.
    — Arricca Elin SanSone, Southern Living, 12 Sep. 2026
Definition of acidic
Adjective
  • Self-interrogation, of course, is often unpleasant and is not a prescription that is likely to sell many books.
    — Meghan O’Gieblyn, New Yorker, 14 Sep. 2026
  • There was a lot of work on the medical cases to make the investigations complex and realistic, but there was also an entry point built around a strong, funny, unpleasant character, completely at odds with her return to her roots.
    — Roberto Prieto, Variety, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of unpleasant
Adjective
  • Immigrant and human-rights advocates called the situation unacceptable, particularly given the dangers facing returning Haitians, including gang killings and surging kidnappings.
    — Gérard Maxineau, Miami Herald, 11 Sep. 2026
  • That’s an unacceptable delay for units in active combat operations.
    — Nir Goldstein, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of unacceptable
Verb
  • Sydney Sweeney is no stranger to starring in a controversial ad — and her latest effort has infuriated female athletes, including Olympians.
    — Jake Kanter, Deadline, 14 Sep. 2026
  • But Marcia was beginning to sound like Marcia on the page, Marcia in those essays that both excited and infuriated her readers.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of infuriate
Adjective
  • The idea that these two would have a five-minute-or-less breakup conversation, then plop down on the couch and happily embark on an acid trip together, strains credulity a little, even for this bizarre, codependent friend group.
    — Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2026
  • In a sequencer that resembled a large fridge, millions of short nucleic-acid fragments would be identified in the span of ten hours.
    — Jason Liebowitz, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of acid
Adjective
  • After years of upheaval in Florida State athletics—including a then-unprecedented flirtation with private equity and a bitter legal fight with the Atlantic Coast Conference—the school has parted ways with athletic director Michael Alford.
    — Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 14 Sep. 2026
  • Of course, Kiffin left, a bitter and acrimonious separation that played out over 14 agonizing days, just as the Rebels prepped for their first College Football Playoff game in history.
    — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of bitter
Adjective
  • Who wouldn’t like to whip out a formula that enabled you to judge this action as evil and the other as merely wrong?
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Sep. 2026
  • The helicopter, which was used by NBC and Telemundo, crashed about two hours after police say Rios drove her 2004 Ford Expedition the wrong way down a busy avenue, ran a red light and struck a vehicle before hitting the bus.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of wrong

Phrases Containing sour

Browse Nearby Words

soupy
sour
source
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Sour.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sour. Accessed 19 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 18
See More

Popular

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
crayons-in-a-circle
Guess the Color Quiz Questions that use the whole box of crayons.
See All