VITRIOLIC • E-FREE TRANSLATION.COM • Definition of Vitriolic

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/vˌɪtriˈɑlɪk/ Listen

adjective

Vitriolic adj.

(Chem.) Of or pertaining to vitriol; derived from, or resembling, vitriol; vitriolous; as, a vitriolic taste. Cf. Vitriol.

Biting, bitter or caustic; having or expressing strong and unpleasantly negative feelings; of speech or feelings; the vitriolic denunciations of opponents by partisan columnists.

Vitriolic acid (Old Chem.),

(a)

sulphuric acid. See Vitriol (b). (Colloq.)

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Etymology of 'Vitriolic'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"Vitriolic" Quotes from Famous Books

... at the last possible moment, the kilted figures scattered to either side of the narrow causeway. The usual stereotyped and vitriolic remonstrances were hurled after the great hooded ...

— All In It K(1) Carries On - A Continuation of the First Hundred Thousand • John Hay Beith (AKA: Ian Hay)

... whole," stammereth the Doctor further on, "the chief fault of the Dunciad is the violence and vehemence of its satire." The same fault may be found with vitriolic acid, nay, with Richardson's Ultimate Result. No doubt, that for many domestic purposes water is preferable—for not a few, milk—and for some, milk and water. But not with that latter amalgam did Hannibal force ...

— Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 58, Number 358, August 1845 • Various

... that I know all the intrigues of his proposed elevation. He will unbosom, and both trust and fear me. These pampered civilians are as haughty in their way as the military and be damned to them," mused Hawke, cheerfully humming his battle song, those words of a vitriolic wit: ...

— A Fascinating Traitor • Richard Henry Savage

... gone off to San Francisco too, and Laird was trying his hand at editing. I woke up Mr. Laird with some courtesies of the kind that were fashionable among newspaper editors in that region, and he came back at me the next day in a most vitriolic way. He was hurt by something I had said about him—some little thing—I don't remember what it was now—probably called him a horse-thief, or one of those little phrases customarily used to describe another editor. They were no doubt just, and accurate, ...

— Chapters from My Autobiography • Mark Twain

... generally the vitriolic foe of pageant. He must be read aloud. He stands for the spoken word, for the iron power of life that may be concentrated in a phrase like the "All or nothing" of Brand. Though Peer Gynt has its spectacular side, Ibsen generally comes in through the ear alone. He can ...

— The Art Of The Moving Picture • Vachel Lindsay