Caustic

Quick meaning: Caustic is an adjective meaning Capable of burning, corroding or destroying organic tissue.

Meaning

Capable of burning, corroding or destroying organic tissue.

More Meanings

1. (of language, etc.) Sharp, bitter, cutting, biting, and sarcastic in a scathing way.
2. Any substance or means which, applied to animal or other organic tissue, burns, corrodes, or destroys it by chemical action; an escharotic.
3. (optics, computer graphics) The envelope of reflected or refracted rays of light for a given surface or object.
4. (mathematics) The envelope of reflected or refracted rays for a given curve.
5. (informal, chemistry, uncountable) Caustic soda.

Example Sentences

"How now!" said Scrooge, caustic and cold as ever.

Madame Beck esteemed me learned and blue; Miss Fanshawe, caustic, ironic, and cynical

this set of worthies, who were only too prone to shut up their emotions with caustic words.

The Secretary and the Assistant-Secretaries would say little caustic things about him to the senior clerks, and seemed somewhat to begrudge him his new honours.

Word Forms

• caustics

Synonyms for caustic

Depending on context, synonyms include acidic, biting, burning, corrosive, searing, bitchy.

Related Words

Related dictionary entries include corrosive, erosive, blistering, venomous, virulent, acid.

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