acidulous remark
- noun
- /əˈsɪdʒələs rɪˈmɑrk/
:
comentario ácido
- Her acidulous remark left everyone in the room silent.
Examples
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She couldn't help making an acidulous remark about his choice of tie.
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Even his compliments were tinged with an acidulous remark that left people uneasy.
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The meeting was disrupted by an acidulous remark from one of the participants.
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Did you hear that acidulous remark he made?
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She couldn't help making an acidulous remark about his choice of tie.
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The meeting was disrupted by an acidulous remark from one of the participants.
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Even his compliments were tinged with an acidulous remark that left people uneasy.
Synonyms
14
6.4
A short sharp remark meant to hurt or criticize someone
4
3.5
A rude remark that hurts or upsets someone
1
7.2
A harshly critical comment that aims to hurt or mock someone
1
6.3
A short sharp comment that sounds rude
1
7.4
A mean comment that aims to hurt someone
A short sharp comment that criticizes someone in a hurtful or sarcastic way
A sharp remark that hurts or shocks people
A remark that is harsh and meant to hurt someone's feelings
A mean remark that hurts or criticizes someone
A very harsh and angry comment meant to hurt someone
Antonyms
How Sharp
Surface Forms
Morphology
The adjective 'acidulous' means mildly sour or bitter, so when combined with 'remark' the meaning 'a slightly bitter or sharp comment' is directly inferable from the constituents. Although 'acidulous' is somewhat literary/less frequent, the metaphor of sourness for tone is transparent and cross-linguistically recognizable, so a learner who knows both words would understand the phrase.
Etymology
Acidulous remark comes from the word acid, meaning sour, and remark, meaning a comment. Imagine a sour lemon that makes your face pucker, and an acidulous remark 'stings' or feels 'bitter', so it means a 'sharp' or slightly 'sarcastic' comment.