as in abusive
marked by harsh insulting language
braced himself for another vitriolic dressing-down by his perennially displeased father
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Recent Examples of vitriolic
Whether ecstatic or vitriolic, the attention the book garnered was unprecedented.
—
Via Scribner, Literary Hub, 7 Oct. 2025
One of the most viral and vitriolic critiques came from Crissle West, co-host of the popular pop-culture podcast The Read.
—Meagan Jordan, Rolling Stone, 3 Oct. 2025
But the vitriolic attacks and reemerging calls to boycott the Super Bowl come as no surprise.
—Raquel Reichard, Refinery29, 30 Sep. 2025
As most artists have to deal with vitriolic comments from online haters to some degree, HARDY seems to have found his best way of dealing with it.
—Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 26 Sep. 2025
So, behind the bitter op-eds and vitriolic letters, what was the problem?
—Big Think, 25 Sep. 2025
What was meant to be a moment of silence for Kirk on the floor of the House of Representatives on Wednesday evening soon gave way to flashes of a vitriolic political divide that would escalate in the aftermath of the 31-year-old’s death.
—Chad De Guzman, Time, 11 Sep. 2025
Reaching consensus on the approach that will work best to meet the short and long-term needs of poor families means everyone must move away from absolutist positions, and discussions concerning the issue must be comprehensive, open and honest rather than accusatory and vitriolic.
—Chris Roemer, Baltimore Sun, 21 Aug. 2025
In the Facebook comments accompanying the announcement, following a scattering of positive reactions, the conversation turned vitriolic.
—Andrew Silow-Carroll, Sun Sentinel, 19 Aug. 2025
Via Scribner, Literary Hub, 7 Oct. 2025
One of the most viral and vitriolic critiques came from Crissle West, co-host of the popular pop-culture podcast The Read.
—Meagan Jordan, Rolling Stone, 3 Oct. 2025
But the vitriolic attacks and reemerging calls to boycott the Super Bowl come as no surprise.
—Raquel Reichard, Refinery29, 30 Sep. 2025
As most artists have to deal with vitriolic comments from online haters to some degree, HARDY seems to have found his best way of dealing with it.
—Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 26 Sep. 2025
So, behind the bitter op-eds and vitriolic letters, what was the problem?
—Big Think, 25 Sep. 2025
What was meant to be a moment of silence for Kirk on the floor of the House of Representatives on Wednesday evening soon gave way to flashes of a vitriolic political divide that would escalate in the aftermath of the 31-year-old’s death.
—Chad De Guzman, Time, 11 Sep. 2025
Reaching consensus on the approach that will work best to meet the short and long-term needs of poor families means everyone must move away from absolutist positions, and discussions concerning the issue must be comprehensive, open and honest rather than accusatory and vitriolic.
—Chris Roemer, Baltimore Sun, 21 Aug. 2025
In the Facebook comments accompanying the announcement, following a scattering of positive reactions, the conversation turned vitriolic.
—Andrew Silow-Carroll, Sun Sentinel, 19 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for vitriolic
Adjective
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On The Rookie, Jenna Dewan shared screentime with her real-life fiancé, Steve Kazee, who played her frightening, abusive husband, Jason Wyler.—
Tanya Melendez,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 Jan. 2026
-
The story follows a young woman, a lifelong swimmer and Olympic hopeful, who accepts a college swimming scholarship in Texas in order to escape an abusive father and an alcoholic, suicidal mother.—
Karla Rodriguez,
Footwear News,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Many researchers cite those exact words as insulting or wrong when asked about their own terminations.—
STAT Staff,
STAT,
29 Dec. 2025
-
With two toddlers and a 10-hour workday for her husband, the advice was more insulting than helpful.—
Tereza Shkurtaj,
PEOPLE,
7 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
We were inspired by their outrageous VHS cover art that promised epic tales of heroic barbarians rescuing buxom babes from giant monsters.—
Bear McCreary,
HollywoodReporter,
7 Nov. 2025
-
Be outrageous, ridicule the fraidy-cats, rejoice in all the oddities that freedom can produce.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Juxtaposed with these vituperative remarks are, naturally, shots of Trump seemingly falling asleep while on camera.—
Jordan Hoffman,
Entertainment Weekly,
26 Dec. 2025
-
From his pulpit, Wicks rains down selectively vituperative fire and brimstone, with an eye toward provoking walkouts from unsuspecting visitors—say, a gay couple or a single mom.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
11 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
Another cupped his hands and shouted invective.—
Seth Emerson,
New York Times,
12 Oct. 2025
-
Rory McIlroy was the lightning rod for the invective, and so was his wife.—
Don Riddell,
CNN Money,
29 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Banners containing commercial, political or obscene material, or that block guest views.—
Ed Masley,
AZCentral.com,
4 Nov. 2025
-
Just another week in the world of Ball, who was fined $35,000 by the NBA on Monday for making an obscene gesture in the fourth quarter of the Hornets’ 144-117 loss to Miami.—
Roderick Boone,
Charlotte Observer,
2 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Vitriolic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vitriolic. Accessed 9 Jan. 2026.
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