acerbate
/eks'æsə:beit/ Cách viết khác : (acerbate) /'æsəbeit/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Verb:
- To make something sour or bitter in taste.
- To irritate or exasperate someone; to make someone feel bitter or resentful.
Examples
- Verb:
- The spoiled milk will acerbate the taste of the coffee.
- His constant criticism began to acerbate her, filling her with resentment.
- Adding too much lemon can acerbate the sauce, making it unpleasant.
Advanced Usage
- "to acerbate a situation": to make a difficult situation worse or more tense.
- His inflammatory comments only served to acerbate the already tense negotiations.
- Used in formal or literary contexts to describe the worsening of feelings or conditions.
Variants and Related Words
- Acerbic (adj): sharp and forthright in tone or taste; bitter.
- She is known for her acerbic wit.
- Acerbity (n): sourness or bitterness of taste, manner, or tone.
- The acerbity of his reply surprised everyone.
Synonyms
- Exacerbate: to make a problem, bad situation, or negative feeling worse. (Note: Often used interchangeably with "acerbate" for worsening situations, but "exacerbate" is more common and does not carry the "sour taste" meaning).
- Embitter: to make someone feel bitter or resentful.
- Irritate: to make someone annoyed or angry.
- Aggravate: to make a problem or situation worse.
Antonyms
- Soothe: to gently calm a person or their feelings.
- Pacify: to quell the anger or agitation of.
- Alleviate: to make suffering or a problem less severe.
- Sweeten: to make something taste sweet.
Notes on Usage
- The verb "acerbate" is relatively rare in modern everyday English. The more commonly used verb for the meaning "to make worse" is exacerbate.
- When used, it often appears in formal writing or specific contexts discussing bitterness, either literal (taste) or figurative (emotion).
Verb
- make sour or bitter
- cause to be bitter or resentful
- These injustices embittered her even more