Definition of bitter

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bit·ter    (btr) KEY 

ADJECTIVE:
bit·ter·er, bit·ter·est

1. Having or being a taste that is sharp, acrid, and unpleasant.
2. Causing a sharply unpleasant, painful, or stinging sensation; harsh: enveloped in bitter cold; a bitter wind.
3. Difficult or distasteful to accept, admit, or bear: the bitter truth; bitter sorrow.
4. Proceeding from or exhibiting strong animosity: a bitter struggle; bitter foes.
5. Resulting from or expressive of severe grief, anguish, or disappointment: cried bitter tears.
6. Marked by resentment or cynicism: "He was already a bitter elderly man with a gray face" (John Dos Passos).

ADVERB:

In an intense or harsh way; bitterly: a bitter cold night.

TRANSITIVE VERB:
bit·tered, bit·ter·ing, bit·ters

To make bitter.

NOUN:

1. That which is bitter: "all words . . . /Failing to give the bitter of the sweet" (Tennyson).
2. bitters A bitter, usually alcoholic liquid made with herbs or roots and used in cocktails or as a tonic.
3. Chiefly British A sharp-tasting beer made with hops.

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ETYMOLOGY:
Middle English, from Old English; see bheid- in Indo-European roots

OTHER FORMS:
bitter·ly(Adverb), bitter·ness(Noun)

SYNONYMS:
bitter, acerbic, acrid

These adjectives mean unpleasantly sharp or pungent in taste or smell: a bitter cough syrup; an acerbic green apple; acrid smoke.