Bitterness

Definition: Bitterness

Bitterness

Noun

1. A feeling of deep and bitter anger and ill-will.

2. A sharp and bitter manner.

3. The taste experience when quinine or coffee is taken into the mouth.

4. The property of having a harsh unpleasant taste.

Date "bitterness" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1010. (references)

Note: Bitterness \Bit"ter*ness\, noun. [from Anglo-Saxon expression biternys; biter better -nys -ness.]. (references)

Synonyms: Bitterness

Synonyms: acerbity (n), acrimony (n), bitter (n), gall (n), jaundice (n), rancor (n), rancour (n), resentment (n). (additional references)

Context	Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus).
Bitterness	Noun: bitterness, acridness, acridity, acrimony; caustic, alkali; acerbity; gall, wormwood; bitters, astringent bitters.
Enmity	Noun: enmity, hostility; unfriendliness; Adjective: discord; bitterness, rancor.
Hate	Umbrage, pique, grudge; dudgeon, spleen bitterness, bitterness of feeling; ill blood, bad blood; acrimony; malice; implacability; (revenge).
Pain	Noun: painfulness; Adjective: trouble, care; (pain); trial; affliction, infliction; blow, stroke, burden, load, curse; bitter pill, bitter draught; waters of bitterness.
	Concern, grief, sorrow, distress, affliction, woe, bitterness, heartache; carking cares; heavy heart, aching heart, bleeding heart, broken heart; heavy affliction, gnawing grief.
Regret	Bitterness, heartburning.
Resentment	Pique, umbrage, huff, miff, soreness, dudgeon, acerbity, virulence, bitterness, acrimony, asperity, spleen, gall; heart-burning, heart-swelling; rankling.
Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus.

Crosswords: Bitterness

English words defined with "bitterness": acerbity, Amaritude ♦ Bitterful, bittersweet ♦ Disimbitter, Drop by drop ♦ hard ♦ jaundiced ♦ malice aforethought ♦ semisweet ♦ yellow. (references)

Specialty definitions using "bitterness": Apricot, Archilochian Bitterness ♦ bottle sickness ♦ European bitterness unit ♦ Florimel ♦ Gall of Bitterness ♦ HARMONISTS, Husband ♦ Piers Plowman ♦ Reptile ♦ Walnut, Wedding ♦ Zakkum. (references)

Etymologies containing "bitterness": Galsome. (references)

Domain	Usage
Screenplays	Your success may turn to bitterness and you may wish you had not meddled with the affairs of Wong (The Mysterious Mr. Wong; writing credit: Harry Stephen Keeler; Lew Levenson)
Lyrics	To all that jealousy, that bitterness, that ridicule (Babylon; performing artist: David Gray)
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Domain	Title
Books	Anna Karenina: The Bitterness of Ecstasy (Twaynes Masterwork Studies No 56) (reference) How to Be Free from Bitterness (reference) How to Overcome Anger, Bitterness and Unforgiveness (reference) In Bitterness and in Tears: Andrew Jackson's Destruction of the Creeks and Seminoles (reference) Silent Sabotage: Rescuing Our Careers, Our Companies, and Our Lives from the Creeping Paralysis of Anger and Bitterness (reference) (more book examples)

Music	Beauty and Bitterness (reference) Bitterness Spite Rage & Scorn (reference) Bitterness the Star (reference) (more classical music examples; more popular music examples)
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Thumbnail	Description & Credit
	He could not have told whether his bitterness was toward the boy or himself. Credit: Library of Congress.
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits.

Author	Quotation
Edith	Patriotism is not enough. I must have no hatred or bitterness toward anyone.
Edith Cavell	I realize that patriotism is not enough. I must have no hatred or bitterness towards anyone.
Gaius Valerius Catullus	Not unknown am I to the goddess [Venus] who mingles with her cares a sweet bitterness.
Lucretius	From the very fountain of enchantment there arises a taste of bitterness to spread anguish amongst the flowers.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Author	Date	Quotation
Magna Carta	1215	And all the will, hatreds, and bitterness that have arisen between us and our men, clergy and lay, from the date of the quarrel, we have completely remitted and pardoned to everyone. (reference)
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.	1963	Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. (Delivered on the steps at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. on August 28, 1923)
Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Title	Author	Quote
Emma	Austen, Jane	I am losing all my bitterness against spoilt children, my dearest Emma
Les Miserables	Hugo, Victor	Even Monseigneur Bienvenu then had his hour of party spirit, his hour of bitterness, his clouds
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man	Joyce, James	He remembered with bitterness that scene of tawdry tribute
Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Subject	Topic	Quote
Health		If you hold your nose while eating chocolate, for example, you will have trouble identifying the chocolate flavor--even though you can distinguish the food's sweetness or bitterness. (references)
Economic History	Taiwan	As a result of the February 28 Incident, the native Taiwanese felt a deep-seated bitterness to the mainlanders. (references)
	Slovenia	For all the apparent bitterness that divides left and right wings, there are few fundamental philosophical differences between them in the area of public policy. (references)
Human Rights	Lebanon	The Government endorsed the commission report and then Prime Minister Salim al-Hoss called on all families to "accept reality despite its bitterness." However, in December 2000, following the release by the Syrian authorities of an estimated 149 Lebanese detainees from Syrian jails, including some who had been declared dead by the commission, the Government formed a new committee to reexamine the cases of those who had disappeared during the civil strife. (references)
Minorities	Mauritania	Interethnic bitterness and hostility persists, and continues to be aggravated by climatic, land, and population pressures. (references)
Lexicography	Devil's Dictionary	HARMONISTS, n. A sect of Protestants, now extinct, who came from Europe in the beginning of the last century and were distinguished for the bitterness of their internal controversies and dissensions.
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits.

Speaker	Term	Phrase(s)
Grover Cleveland	1885-1889; 1893-1897	At this hour the animosities of political strife, the bitterness of partisan defeat, and the exultation of partisan triumph should be supplanted by an ungrudging acquiescence in the popular will and a sober, conscientious concern for the general weal.
Richard Nixon	1969-1974	To put the bitterness and divisions of the recent past behind us and to rediscover those shared ideals that lie at the heart of our strength and unity as a great and as a free people.
Ronald Reagan	1981-1989	We should rise above bitterness and reproach, and if Americans could come together in a spirit of understanding and helping, then we could find positive solutions to the tragedy of abortion.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

"Bitterness" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 100.00% of the time. "Bitterness" is used about 697 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted)

Parts of Speech	Percent	Usage per 100 Million Words	Rank in English
Noun (singular)	100%	697	9,565

The following table summarizes names derived from the word "bitterness".
Name	Gender	Language	Meaning
Beth-marcaboth	N/A	Biblical	House of bitterness wiped out
Hazezon-tamar	N/A	Biblical	Drawing near to bitterness
Mara	N/A	Biblical	Bitterness
Maroth	N/A	Biblical	Bitterness
Marsena	N/A	Biblical	Bitterness of a bramble
Meraioth	N/A	Biblical	Bitterness
Meremoth	N/A	Biblical	Bitterness
Moriah	N/A	Biblical	Bitterness of the Lord
Nimrah	N/A	Biblical	Bitterness
Tadmor	N/A	Biblical	Bitterness
Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Expressions using "bitterness": bitterness of heart ♦ cause bitterness ♦ drop of bitterness ♦ European bitterness unit ♦ waters of bitterness ♦ with bitterness. Additional references.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com.

Language		Translations for "bitterness"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses.
Albanian		zemërim (anger, chafe, conniption, Dander, dudgeon, effervescence, effervescency, exasperation, excitement, huff, impatience, indignation, ire, Paddy, paddywhack, passion, petulance, rage, rasp, spite, wax, wrath), hudhurim. (various references)

Arabic		‏مرارة (bitter, bitterish, gall, grief, soreness, vinegar, wormwood), ‏جعة مرة, ‏المرارة, ‏الوجع. (various references)

Bulgarian		язвителност (acerbity, acidity, acrimony, incision, mordacity, pungency, sting, vitriol), горчивина (bitter, poignancy), острота (acridity, acrimony, acuteness, cutting edge, edge, fineness, incision, nip, penetration, poignancy, pungency, sharpness, stridency), озлобеност. (various references)

Chinese		冤苦. (various references)

Czech		trpkost, hořkost (acrimony). (various references)

Dutch		verbittering (acerbity), bitterheid (acerbity). (various references)

Esperanto		maldolĉeco, amareco. (various references)

Finnish		kirpeys (pungency), katkeruus, karvaus (acridity). (various references)

French		amertume. (various references)

German		verbitterung (bitterness of hearth, embitterment, sourness), bitterkeit (acerbity, acrimony, rancor, rancour). (various references)

Greek		πικράδα. (various references)

Hebrew		ממר (affliction, rancour, sorrow), מורת רוח (annoyance, grief, miff, rancour, resentment, sorrow, spite), מרירות (acerbity, acridity, acrimony, embitterment, spleen), מרור�" (calamity, poison), מרר�" (bile, gall), מרר, לע� �" (gall). (various references)

Hungarian		keserûség (acerbity, acridity, Wormwood), keserűség (acridity, acrimoniousness, gall), elkeseredettség (pits). (various references)

Indonesian		kepahitan, kegetiran (acerbity). (various references)

Italian		rancore (grudge, rancor, rancour, spite, vexation), esacerbazione (embitterment, exacerbation), asprezza (acerbity, acridity, asperity, harshness, pungency, ruggedness, sourness, tartness), amarezza (bitters, poignancy). (various references)

Japanese Kanji		苦渋 (affliction, difficulty in understanding, distress, mortification). (various references)

Japanese Katakana		くじゅう (affliction, bitter experience, difficulty in understanding, distress, mortification, ninety), くみ (bitter taste, class, composition, group, set, team, typesetting), ひつう (pathos), うらみ (grudge, malice, matter for regret, regret, resentment), にがさ (bitter taste), にがみ (bitter taste). (various references)

Manx		sherriuid (acerbity, acidity, acridity, acrimony, agony, agony of mind, fustiness, sharpness, tartness), sharrooid. (various references)

Papiamen		amargura (acerbity). (various references)

Pig Latin		itternessbay.(various references)

Portuguese		mordacidade (acridity, mordacity, poignancy, pungency, sarcasm, stinger, virulence), causticidade (acridity, causticity, mordacity, pungency, virulence), amargura (acerbity, bitter, grief), amargor (acerbity, acrimony, gall), agrura (acerbity, acrimony, acuity, sharpness). (various references)

Romanian		venin (fury, poison, rage, spite, venom), vehemenţã (acrimony, vehemence, violence), tãrie (depth, energy, fastness, firmness, force, hardness, height, might, resolution, sky, solidity, steadfastness, stoutness, strength, vigor, vigour), supãrare (affliction, anger, annoyance, burden, care, chafe, cloud, cross, damage, Dander, fury, grief, harm, irritation, mood, moroseness, mumps, pain, peevishness, pet, pettishness, pique, rage, Ruth, sadness, sorrow, spite, spunk, suffering, sulk, trouble, vexation), otravã (bait, bane, poison, venom), fiere (bile, gall, sorrows, troubles, venom), causticitate a stilului, asprime (abruptness, acerbity, acrimony, asperity, callosity, callousness, coarseness, gruffness, hardness, harshness, rigidity, rigor, rigour, roughness, rudeness, severity, sharpness, sternness, stringency), amar (bitter, bitterly, dreadful, gall, poignant, rude, salt, severe, sore, sour, suffering), amãrealã (milkwort), amãrãciune (bitter, gall, grief, poignancy, sorrow, vinegar, Wormwood), înverşunare (acerbity, fierceness, frenzy, fury, heat, rage, stubbornness). (various references)

Russian		горечь. (various references)

Serbo-Croatian		gorčina (acerbity, acrimony, wormwood). (various references)

Spanish		amargura (rue). (various references)

Swedish		bitterhet (acerbity, acridity, acrimony, embitterment, gall, jaundice, vitriol). (various references)

Thai		ความเคีย�"แค้น, ความขมขื่น (rancor, rancour). (various references)

Turkish		yakıcılık (causticity), sertlik (asperity, austerity, curtness, fierceness, firmness, hardness, harshness, headiness, inclemency, intemperance, kick, pungency, rigidity, rigor, rigour, severity, sharpness, solidity, starch, sternness, stiffness, stoniness, strength, strictness, stringency, tartness, toughness, vehemence, wiriness), sertlík (acerbity), keskinlik (acridity, acuity, acuteness, bite, bitter, edge, intension, keenness, mordacity, mordancy, penetration, piquancy, poignancy, pointedness, pungency, quickness, sharpness, tartness, trenchancy, virulence), acilik (acerbity), acılık (acerbity, bite, bitter, heat, keenness, piquancy, poignancy, pungency). (various references)

Ukrainian		гіркота (affliction, chagrin). (various references)

Vietnamese		vị đắng sự cay đắng, sự chua xót, sự đau khổ sự chua cay, sự đau đớn (agony, ailment, pain, pang, smart, soreness, suffering). (various references)

Welsh		chwerwder. (various references)
Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references.

Language	Period	Translations
Latin	500 BCE-Modern	acerbitas, amaritudo. (various references)
Late Latin	300-700	rancor. (various references)
Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Language	Date	Source	Romans Chapter 3, Verse 14
Greek (transliterated)	250 BC	Septuagint	Wn to stoma araV kai pikriaV gemei
Latin	405	Vulgate	Quorum os maledictione et amaritudine plenum est
Old English	990	West Saxon	Werigungum mælað ...... þa muþas, and bitere e
Middle English	1395	Wyclif	The mouth of whiche is ful of cursyng and bitternesse;
Renaissance English	1526	Tyndale	Whose mouthes are full of coursynge and bitternes.
Jacobean English	1611	King James	Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness:
Victorian English	1833	Webster	Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.
Basic English	1964	Ogden	Whose mouth is full of curses and bitter words:
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Language	Romans Chapter 3, Verse 14
Bulgarian	И те не знаят пътя на мира",
Cebuano	"Ang ilang baba napuno sa mga panghimaraut ug sa mapait nga mga pulong."
Chinese	滿口是 �'' 罵苦 �' ．
Croatian	usta im puna kletve i grkosti;
Danish	"deres Mund er fuld af Forbandelse og Beskhed;"
Dutch	Welker mond vol is van vervloeking en bitterheid;
Finnish	heidän suunsa on täynnä kirousta ja katkeruutta.
French	Leur bouche est pleine de malédiction et d`amertume;
German	ihr Mund ist voll Fluchens und Bitterkeit.
Haitian Creole	Bouch yo plen madichon ak jouman.
Indonesian-Bahasa Sehari-hari	Mulut mereka penuh dengan kutuk dan kecaman.
Indonesian-Terjemahan Lama	dan mulutnya penuh dengan kutuk dan kebengisan,
Italian	la loro bocca è piena di maledizione e di amarezza.
Maori	Ki tonu o ratou mangai i te kanga, i te nanakia:
Norwegian	Deres munn er full av forbannelse og bitterhet.
Portuguese	a sua boca está cheia de maldição e amargura.
Rumanian	gura le este plinq de blestem wi de amqrqciune;
Russian	хУФБ ЙИ � ПМОЩ ЪМПУМПЧЙС Й ЗПТЕЮЙ.
Shuar	Aya yajauchin kakaram áujmatin ainiawai.
Spanish	su boca está llena de maldiciones y amargura.
Swahili	Vinywa vyao vimejaa laana chungu.
Swedish	Deras mun är full av förbannelse och bitterhet.
Uma	"Lolita-ra paka' peruge' pai' petipo' -damo."
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Derivations
	Words beginning with "bitterness": bitternesses. (additional references)
Misspellings
	"Bitterness" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: bitternesses, bitternwss, butteriness. (additional references)
Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references).

# of Phoneme Matches	Pronunciation	Word(s) rhyming with "bitterness" (pronounced bi"ternus)
4	-er n u s	cavernous, cleverness, eagerness, governess, otherness, tenderness, togetherness, wilderness.
3	-n u s	abruptness, absoluteness, acuteness, aggressiveness, agribusiness, airworthiness, alertness, aloofness, alumnus, Anas, androgynous, anise, appropriateness, arbitrariness, assertiveness, astuteness, asynchronous, attentiveness, attractiveness, awareness, awfulness, awkwardness, backwardness, badness, bagginess, baldness, bearishness, bigness, bituminous, blackness, blandness, bleakness, blindness, bluntness, boldness, bonus, boorishness, brashness, brightness, bullishness, business, callousness, calmness, carelessness, casualness, cautiousness, cheapness, chitinous, cleanliness, cleanness, closeness, cloudiness, clumsiness, cockiness, cohesiveness, coldness, Colonus, combativeness, compactness, competitiveness, completeness, consciousness, contagiousness, contentiousness, contrariness, Conus, coolness, correctness, coziness, craziness, creativeness, creditworthiness, creepiness, crispness, crookedness, cuteness, dampness, darkness, Deaconess, deadliness, deafness, decisiveness, defensiveness, destructiveness, directness, disingenuousness, distinctiveness, divisiveness, dizziness, dreariness, drowsiness, drunkenness, dryness, dullness, earnestness, edginess, effectiveness, elusiveness, emptiness, evenness, exogenous, eyewitness, faintness, fairness, farsightedness, fastness, fickleness, firmness, fitness, flatness, fondness, foolishness, forcefulness, forgiveness, forthrightness, foulness, fractiousness, frankness, freshness, friendliness, frothiness, fullness, funniness, furnace, gauntness, gayness, gelatinous, gentleness, genuineness, genus, ghastliness, gluttonous, goodness, graciousness, greatness, greenness, grimness, hairiness, handedness, happiness, hardness, harmfulness, harness, harshness, heinous, helplessness, highness, hoarseness, holiness, homelessness, homesickness, homogenous, hopefulness, hopelessness, humanness, idleness, illness, inclusiveness, indebtedness, indecisiveness, indigenous, ineffectiveness, ineptness, inertness, intravenous, intrusiveness, inventiveness, joblessness, Johannes, kindness, larcenous, largeness, lateness, lawlessness, laziness, lenis, lightfastness, lightness, likeness, liveliness, loneliness, lousiness, luminous, madness, Manus, meanness, membranous, menace, Minas, mindedness, minus, monotonous, mountainous, mutinous, narrowness, nastiness, nearsightedness, neatness, nervousness, newness, niceness, nitrogenous, nonbusiness, nonpoisonous, nosiness, nothingness, numbness, ominous, oneness, onus, openness, orderliness, outrageousness, outspokenness, pandanus, peacefulness, penis, permissiveness, persuasiveness, pervasiveness, pettiness, playfulness, poisonous, politeness, polygynous, pompousness, possessiveness, powerlessness, preparedness, queasiness, quickness, quietness, raciness, randomness, rareness, ravenous, rawness, readiness, reasonableness, rebelliousness, recklessness, redness, remoteness, resistiveness, resourcefulness, responsiveness, restiveness, restlessness, restrictiveness, richness, righteousness, rightness, riskiness, robustness, roominess, roughness, rowdiness, rudeness, ruinous, ruthlessness, sacredness, sadness, Salinas, sameness, scantiness, secretiveness, selfishness, selflessness, sensitiveness, separateness, seriousness, shakiness, shallowness, sharpness, shortness, shortsightedness, shrewdness, shyness, sickness, silliness, sinus, skittishness, slackness, sleepiness, sloppiness, slovenliness, slowness, sluggishness, slyness, smallness, smoothness, smugness, softness, solitariness, soundness, spiritedness, squeamishness, starkness, steadfastness, steadiness, steepness, sternness, stiffness, stillness, stinginess, stoutness, strangeness, stubbornness, sturdiness, suddenness, suggestiveness, sweetness, swiftness, tardiness, tartness, tastiness, tetanus, thickness, thinness, thoroughness, thoughtfulness, tightness, timeliness, tiredness, toughness, trustworthiness, truthfulness, ugliness, unconsciousness, uneasiness, unfairness, unhappiness, uniqueness, unpleasantness, unwieldiness, unwillingness, usefulness, vagueness, vastness, venous, viciousness, villainous, vindictiveness, vividness, voluminous, wariness, wastefulness, waterishness, weakness, weariness, weightlessness, weirdness, wellness, wetness, whiteness, wholeness, wholesomeness, wickedness, wildness, willingness, wimpiness, wistfulness, witness, wonderfulness, worldliness, worthiness, wryness.
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits.

Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams
	Direct Anagrams: tenebrists.
	Words within the letters "b-e-e-i-n-r-s-s-t-t"
	-1 letter: insetters, interests, sternites, tenebrist, triteness.
	-2 letters: bitterns, insetter, interest, sentries, sternest, sternite, stinters, trientes.
	-3 letters: bestirs, betises, betters, bisters, bistres, bittern, bitters, entires, entries, estrins, inserts, nesters, netters, nettier, renests, resents, resites, retests, retines, retints, seiners, sereins, serines, sestine, setters, sinters, sitters, stinter, streets, tensest, tenters, tentier, tersest, testers, testier, tinters, trienes.
	-4 letters: berets.
	Words containing the letters "b-e-e-i-n-r-s-s-t-t"
	+1 letter: brittleness.
	+2 letters: bitternesses, brattinesses.
	+3 letters: brittlenesses.
	+4 letters: cyberneticists.
	+5 letters: bittersweetness, obstructiveness, reestablishment, sinterabilities, submetacentrics.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro.

Expression	Frequency per Day
bitterness	31
bitterness no	4
bitterness quote	3
root of bitterness	3
bitterness dealing	2
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Bitterness

Definition: Bitterness

Bitterness

Noun

Synonyms: Bitterness

Synonyms within Context: Bitterness

Bitterness

Enmity

Hate

Pain

Regret

Resentment

Crosswords: Bitterness

Modern Usage: Bitterness

Screenplays

Lyrics

Commercial Usage: Bitterness

Books

Music

Photo Album: Bitterness

Familiar Quotations: Bitterness

Edith

Edith Cavell

Gaius Valerius Catullus

Lucretius

Historic Usage: Bitterness

Magna Carta

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Use in Literature: Bitterness

Emma

Austen, Jane

Les Miserables

Hugo, Victor

Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

Joyce, James

Non-Fiction Usage: Bitterness

Lexicography

Devil's Dictionary

Speeches: Bitterness

Grover Cleveland

Richard Nixon

Ronald Reagan

Usage Frequency: Bitterness

Derived & Related Names: Bitterness

Expressions: Bitterness

Frequency of Internet Keywords: Bitterness

Modern Translation: Bitterness

Albanian

Arabic

Bulgarian

Chinese

Czech

Dutch

Esperanto

Finnish

French

German

Greek

Hebrew

Hungarian

Indonesian

Italian

Japanese Kanji

Japanese Katakana

Manx

Papiamen

Pig Latin

Portuguese

Romanian

Russian

Serbo-Croatian

Spanish

Swedish

Thai

Turkish

Ukrainian

Vietnamese

Welsh

Ancestral Language Translations: Bitterness

Bible Trace: Bitterness