acidulent

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /əˈsɪdjələnt/ UK /əˈsɪdjʊlənt/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

adj
somewhat sour or sharp in taste or temper

He answered with an acidulent remark that soured the mood.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · somewhat sour or sharp in... acidulous sour tart sharp acrid caustic

Opposites

sweet mild bland

Word family

Related forms acid acidulousacidify

Etymology

From Latin acidulus ('slightly sour'), diminutive of acidus ('sour'), from acēre ('to be sour'), from Proto-Indo-European *h2eḱ- ('sharp').

acidulus Latin *h₂eḱ- Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# acidulent

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /əˈsɪdjələnt/
**IPA (UK):** /əˈsɪdjʊlənt/

## Meanings
1. somewhat sour or sharp in taste or temper

## Examples
- He answered with an acidulent remark that soured the mood.

## Synonyms
- acidulous
- sour
- tart
- sharp
- acrid
- caustic

## Antonyms
- sweet
- mild
- bland

## Related Forms
- acid
- acidulous
- acidify

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: acidulus
- Root: *h₂eḱ-

## Etymology
From Latin acidulus ('slightly sour'), diminutive of acidus ('sour'), from acēre ('to be sour'), from Proto-Indo-European *h2eḱ- ('sharp').

## AI Etymology
acidulent comes from Latin acidulus ('slightly sour'), diminutive of acidus ('sour'), from acēre ('to be sour'), from Proto-Indo-European *h2eḱ- ('sharp'). The path is chiefly one of transmission: an older form is taken into English, with the word's shape and meaning carried through the language names and forms preserved in the history. In modern use, the adjective sense is "somewhat sour or sharp in taste or temper", which keeps the etymology connected to the word's present dictionary value rather than treating it as a merely historical label. The wider word family includes related English forms such as acid, acidulous, acidify, showing how the same base continues to support neighboring English vocabulary. The principal historical forms in the chain include Latin acidulus, Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ-, which anchor the explanation in named linguistic material.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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