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caustic
ADJECTIVE:

of chemicals, burning:


1. capable of burning, corroding, or destroying living tissue (by chemical action):
caustic soda.

2. causing a burning or stinging sensation.

3. capable of burning, corroding, dissolving, or eating away by chemical action.

4. capable of destroying or eating away by chemical action; corrosive:
The chemical was so caustic that it ate through the pipe.

of humor, speech:

1. severely critical or sarcastic:
a caustic remark.

2. sarcastic; cutting:
a caustic reply.

3. marked by incisive sarcasm:
a caustic film; review caustic humor.

in optics, of light (adjective):

1. of, relating to, or denoting light that is reflected or refracted by a curved surface.

2. of or relating to light emitted from a point source and reflected or refracted from a curved surface.

NOUN:

in chemistry, of chemicals (noun):


1. a caustic material, agent, or substance, esp an alkali.

2. a hydroxide of a light metal.

3. a substance that burns or destroys organic tissue by chemical action.

4. a strong corrosive alkali (such as sodium hydroxide).

in optics, of light (noun):

1. Also called "caustic surface," a surface that envelops the light rays reflected or refracted by a curved surface.

2. Also called "caustic curve," a curve formed by the intersection of a caustic surface with a plane.

3. the envelope of rays emanating from a point and reflected or refracted by a curved surface.

Synonyms:

acerb, acerbic, acid, acidic, acidulous, acrid, barbed, biting, bitter, corrosive, cutting, mordant, pungent, sarcastic, sardonic, satiric (or satirical), scalding, scathing, sharp, smart-aleck, smart-alecky, smart-mouthed, snarky, tart.

Synonym Study (Merriam-Webster):

Caustic, mordant, acrid, and scathing mean stingingly incisive.

Caustic suggests a biting wit:
caustic comments.

Mordant suggests a wit that is used with deadly effectiveness:
mordant reviews of the play.

Acrid implies bitterness and often malevolence:
acrid invective.

Scathing implies indignant attacks delivered with fierce severity:
a scathing satire.

Related Words:

abrasive, acerbic, pungent, biting, mordant, acid, pithy, scathing, incisive, trenchant, satiric, sharp, bitter, harsh, keen, astringent, tart, corroding, rough, cutting.

Origin:

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin causticus < Greek kaustikós burning, caustic, equivalent to kaust(ós) burnt (verbal adjective of kaíein to burn) + -ikos -ic. C14: from Latin causticus, from Greek kaustikos, from kaiein to burn. —Dictionary.com. // First Known Use of caustic: Adjective: 14th century. Noun: 15th century. History and Etymology for caustic: Adjective and Noun: Latin causticus, from Greek kaustikos, from kaiein to burn. —Merriam-Webster.

Sources: 1, 2.

Added: 18 June 2020 {2:23 PM}
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