1
as in acidic
causing or characterized by the one of the four basic taste sensations that is produced chiefly by acids
a slightly acidulous drink that is far more refreshing than the overly sweet iced tea that is also available
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2
as in sarcastic
marked by the use of wit that is intended to cause hurt feelings
a gently acidulous writing style that never becomes annoying
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Recent Examples of acidulous
Six days a week, its chirpy, acidulous anchors expose the shortcomings of cabinet ministers and their opposition shadows.
—
Dominic Green, WSJ, 11 Nov. 2022
Ray collaborated with the cinematographer Harry Stradling to create a screeching, acidulous palette of yellows, reds, and greens that stand out all the more against Ray’s calculated array of black-and-white outfits.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 30 Aug. 2022
His tangy, off-kilter visual compositions, rendered in an acidulous, sun-washed Kodachrome palette, convey a sense of spontaneous wonder and enthusiasm and lend daily conversations and activities a distinctive cinematic identity.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 23 June 2022
Here, Mankiewicz, working for the first time in color—in a palette on the edge of the alluring and the acidulous—relies on a determinedly moving camera to convey the passage of time and evoke the drama’s elegiac mode.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 30 July 2021
Sharp observations like these show us glimpses of the acidulous social satirist of Hollywood’s Golden Age.
—Washington Post, 28 Apr. 2021
Sourced from Provence, the purple plant is balanced out by acidulous Italian bergamot and spicy-sweet tonka bean.
—Lauren Valenti, Vogue, 6 June 2019
Dominic Green, WSJ, 11 Nov. 2022
Ray collaborated with the cinematographer Harry Stradling to create a screeching, acidulous palette of yellows, reds, and greens that stand out all the more against Ray’s calculated array of black-and-white outfits.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 30 Aug. 2022
His tangy, off-kilter visual compositions, rendered in an acidulous, sun-washed Kodachrome palette, convey a sense of spontaneous wonder and enthusiasm and lend daily conversations and activities a distinctive cinematic identity.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 23 June 2022
Here, Mankiewicz, working for the first time in color—in a palette on the edge of the alluring and the acidulous—relies on a determinedly moving camera to convey the passage of time and evoke the drama’s elegiac mode.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 30 July 2021
Sharp observations like these show us glimpses of the acidulous social satirist of Hollywood’s Golden Age.
—Washington Post, 28 Apr. 2021
Sourced from Provence, the purple plant is balanced out by acidulous Italian bergamot and spicy-sweet tonka bean.
—Lauren Valenti, Vogue, 6 June 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for acidulous
Adjective
-
The way the soil responds will give you an idea of whether your soil is acidic, alkaline, or neutral.—
Lauren Landers,
Better Homes & Gardens,
27 May 2025
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The acidic soil at Sutton Hoo, which rotted away the wood of the Anglo-Saxon ship and only left impressions of planks and rows of iron rivets, means that many of the bone combs previously found at Sutton Hoo have not been well-preserved, Howarth said.—
Ashley Strickland,
CNN Money,
24 May 2025
Adjective
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While the jeers towards Xhaka followed the midfielder, Arsenal’s captain at the time, retaliating to sarcastic cheers from the crowd at him being replaced in an October 2019 home match against Crystal Palace, those directed at Eboue were due to his performance.—
Carl Anka,
New York Times,
14 May 2025
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His first half was littered with increasingly ridiculous highlights: a lefty hook over Isaiah Hartenstein, a potpourri of 3s with hands in his face, a sarcastic stare-down after his defender tried taking a charge, followed by a pass to himself off the backboard to simplify the finish.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
13 May 2025
Adjective
-
Azaleas do like an acid soil and grow best when the soil acidity is in the pH range of 4.5 to 5.5.—
Tom MacCubbin,
The Orlando Sentinel,
24 May 2025
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Fluoride also replaces minerals lost from teeth due to acid breakdown, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).—
Mary Kekatos,
ABC News,
15 May 2025
Adjective
-
All Systems Red is a legible introduction to Wells’ hyper-capitalist, playfully satiric galaxy.—
Rory Doherty,
Time,
16 May 2025
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That’s the premise of Douglas Is Cancelled, a cruelly funny 2024 BBC sitcom that seems very much in sync with satiric comedies such as The Office and W1A and Yes Minister.—
Air Mail,
Air Mail,
22 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
The inmates used blankets to protect themselves from the barbed wire on the fence.—
Alex Sundby,
CBS News,
21 May 2025
-
The men brought blankets to protect themselves from barbed wire.—
Cindy Von Quednow,
CNN Money,
20 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Acidulous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/acidulous. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.
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